Naruto and the White Fox
by Mad2theMax88
Summary: Naruto is told everything by a red eyed white haired lady. Now he strives not only to be Hokage, but rebuild his clan as well.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. If I did, I wouldn't be writing Fan-Fiction.**

Branches whispered past her ears as she traveled the woods as fast as she could. As she ran, desperation evident in her every step, her mind slowly became coherent once again.

She couldn't believe it; what her brother had done. It was beyond her understanding, and just remembering pushed her to run even harder. She had been running for days now, losing track on how many exactly.

Unfortunately, she was running on chakra alone and even that was running dangerously low. There were several broken bones, and blood flowed freely from several wounds. All of her energy was being put to running though; healing could come later.

However, as much as she willed herself to move forward, she was slowing down. She pushed herself to keep moving, even though her limbs screamed for her to stop.

A tree root magically came to life and moved to trip her. That's what she told herself at least, as she came crashing down.

She tried to get up. Her limbs refused. She continued to try. Her limbs refused once again and enforced their claim by giving out on her. Her breathing was heavy and her eyesight was blurring.

"nononononono can't pass out. Have to keep go…"

All faded to black.

'_Ohhhhh, what happened? My head won't stop ringing._'

She had just regained consciousness, her eyes still closed. That's when it hit her, all the memories, the pain, and the horror of losing her entire family. The last memory was that of her brother, laughing with glee as he slaughtered them all.

She shot up, eyes wide and in a fighting stance. At that moment was when she was finally able to take notice of her surroundings. She could have sworn she was in the woods when she passed out. Now she was in a well-furnished room.

There were fine Mahogany dressers and closets. There was a full-length mirror in the back corner. To her left was a desk, also made of mahogany and covered in scrolls. To her right was an open door that lead to a bathroom with…'_is that a Jacuzzi tub_?!?'

Behind her was another door, which looks to lead to a small balcony barely big enough for 2 people. At the foot of the bed directly in the middle of the room was a chest. In a room like this, the chest was clearly out of place. Unlike everything else in the room the chest was fairly plain. The bed was massive. It could easily fit 4 people. It was also incredibly soft. She should know. She was standing on it.

Just then she heard a noise, past the chest to a closed door. She quickly moved to hide, but the pain that had seemingly gone away came back in full force. Her body collapsed right back to where she started. Looking herself over, specifically where the pain was, she noticed bandages covering most of her body.

"I wouldn't move if I were you. You took quite a beating and are probably pretty sore." A voice came from the door. "Also you're in the hokage tower's bed room. Sometimes you just got to spend the night."

She looked up to see a smiling blond. He was wearing white robes and was holding a box. His eyes were a dark blue. She felt herself getting lost in those blue eyes for a moment. She snapped herself out of her trance with a quick shake, an action that she immediately regretted, what with the pain that came from the motion and all.

"Hungry? I brought food." While saying this, he walked towards the bed, holding the box up to show her.

While she was at first a bit weary about eating food from a complete stranger, she was hungry and the man didn't seem threatening. She didn't move because of the pain though and waited for him to come to her. Reaching into the box, he started to pull her meal out. She licked her lips in anticipation.

Okay, she was really hungry.

What he pulled out however changed that really fast; it was a brown bone biscuit that had the words "YUM" on it.

'_A DOG BISCUIT!! HE WANTS ME TO EAT A DOG BISCUIT!!_' All of a sudden she wasn't so hungry.

He held out the biscuit for her to take. She obligingly took it and spit it out to the side of the bed. It slid along the floor a little ways.

"Ohhh… don't like biscuits, huh?" He said that with amusement all over his face. He pulled another out.

'_He better not try to fee…' _Her line of thought was cut short as he took a bite. He tilted his head up and closed his eyes; his left hand holding what's left of the dog treat moved up and placed his index finger on his chin. Taking this as his pose for pondering, she decided that he looked almost noble, if it weren't for the half eaten biscuit sticking out of his hand.

"It's not that bad. It's no ramen, but I like it." He stated as he lowered his head to look at her and swallowed.

'_Fine, you eat it. Just get me something else, and don't talk with your mouth full.' _Inwardly, she was rather annoyed. On the outside, she showed it.

Ignoring this or at least appearing not to notice, he continued speaking.

"It's not everyday I come across a 9 tailed fox on my walks, especially bleeding in the wood's ones. I don't know what happened, but you're safe here. You are as beautiful as the legends say though. Fur is as white as the snow," in an admiring tone, "and your tail slowly changes to a beautiful shade of red."

He said this while moving closer. She was blushing underneath the fur.

'_Wait why am I blushing, and what's with his eyes?' _Before either question could be answered, a swift knock on the door made their heads snap.

'_When did he close the door?' _When she nearly got lost in his blue eyes earlier, was the answer that eluded her.

"Hokage-sama, are you in there?" A female voice asked through the door.

Faster then the 9 tails could react, he gently brought the sheets over her as to hide her from sight.

"Yes, you may enter," as the box was shoved under the covers next to her. He sat directly in front of her to hide the lump.

"Hokage-sama what are you doing? You have papers to fill out." He cringed at the word paper.

"I know. I was just taking a break. I'll get back to work in a little bit." Lying through his teeth.

Sighing, "Okay, but don't take too long." With that said she turned around and closed the door.

"She bought it thankfully," he says while wiping sweat from his forehead.

She moved her head from under the blanket. _'Well that was weird.'_ She looked up at the man still trying to figure him out.

He turned to her and began to scratch her chin with his index finger. It hurt a little, but it was for the most part enjoyable. She closed her eyes in bliss. "Thank you for being quiet. I'm not aloud to have pets after that whole monkey incident." He said smiling. She on the other hand shot her eye open.

'Pet?'

"Don't worry; I'm going to take good care of you." Still smiling. Still completely oblivious to the danger he was in.

'Oh hell no….'

CRUNCH

"……"

"……"

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!"

She bit his finger fairly hard, and his yell could be heard in Kumo.

"Hokage-sama!" He heard coming from the door. He quickly hid the fox again, finger still securely in her jaws. He moved to hide the lump on the bed and lifted his foot.

"Hokage-sama, are you alright?" As the door few open. The girl from earlier yelled with worry all over her face.

Fighting back the tears, he grabbed his foot with his free hand. "I'm fine, just stubbed my toe getting up…" 'Yes…said that with a straight face.' The hokage mentally patted him-self in the back, thinking that it was all he needed to do.

"Ohh I see, well… WAIT, you pulled that all the time. Where's the animal!?!" Anger quickly moved onto her face.

"What? I don't have…" he tried to cover but was swiftly cut off.

"Where is it? You use that excuse whenever an animal bites you and you're hiding it."

"I have no idea what you're talking about." He calmly stated. Shaking his finger free from out of the fox's mouth, he raised his hands in a gesture of surrender.

"Are those teeth marks and is that a dog biscuit on the floor!?!" She exclaims, pointing to the evidence of his crime.

At that moment some ANBU and the 3rd Hokage were at the door. "What is going on?" Sarutobi demanded. Sarutobi was done being the Hokage, but he still helped around the office. He hated feeling useless and his retirement made him feel just that.

"He has another animal, just look at his finger and the biscuit! Especially that look on his face!"

They all noticed him try and hide his finger behind his back, and him giving the innocent dog biscuit a death glare.

"You know you can't have pets. You remember the monkey, right?"

Sarutobi paled at the word 'monkey'. He turned to at the man. "Minato where is the animal?" He wasn't going to repeat that day of horror, when he brought that monkey to the tower. It was the only time he regretted ever signing the monkey summoning contract.

Minato tried not to panic, but was failing. "I don't ha…"

"Excuse me." A new voice cut in. Every pair of eyes turned the owner of that voice. "The Hokage is very busy at the moment, and no… I am not. A. Pet." The young women said. The last part was pointedly, more towards Minato than anyone else.

She had long white hair and crimson eyes. Her smile is as close to perfect as you can get. The covers were preventing full view from the neck down; she was covered in bandages, but they all clearly thought she was naked.

Sarutobi was proof of that when his nose thoroughly exploded with blood and fell backwards unconscious. The ANBU were clearly baffled on what to do, even with the masks on it was easy to tell. In contrast, the girls face was beat red, lowering her head so she could hide her face behind her hair.

"R-R-R-Right, y-yell if y-you need a-a-anything!" With that she slammed the door as she hurried out of the room. The bite marks and the biscuit completely forgotten.

Minato's mouth was wide open and his eyes were like saucers. He was completely awestruck. Her giggling snapped him out of his trance though. The giggling soon became full blown laughter.

Minato found that he couldn't help but join her. After several minutes they finally calmed down. Both turned to each other, their eyes meeting, nearly losing themselves once more.

"Uzumaki Minato, hokage of Konoha, at your service." He said with a slight bow and a smile from ear to ear.

"Haruhi no Kyuubi, very nice to meet you." She replied with a giggle and a smile that could kill.

The whole situation was just ridiculous and that didn't get by either one of them.

"So mind telling me what happened?" Minato asked tilting his head to the side. Something she found absolutely adorable.

"I could ask the same." She mimicked his motion. "So, what made you think a Kyuubi would let you keep them as a pet?"

"I have never met a Kyuubi. I've heard stories ranging from you all being very smart and powerful creatures, to you being raving animals bent on killing us humans, and to being decedents from Kami himself. I took a shot and missed. How did you change anyway? That's not a henge."

"Obviously, I'm a Kyuubi. The stories of us being powerful are true, and I would like to think I'm smart. We know a lot of things you human have never learned, or lost the knowledge of." She smiled even brighter stating that.

She was enjoying herself so much she lost a little focus and 2 fox ears pop up. They wiggled a bit, catching Minato's attention. Minato quickly covered his nose.

Seeing this, Haruhi wasn't sure what he was doing. That is, until she notice the blood trickling through his fingers. She followed his line of sight, and realized her ears were in plain sight. She instantly knew what he was thinking.

"PERVERT" she yelled covering her ears. The sheets that she had been holding to cover her self were free to fall gracefully off her body. Minato's eyes shot open at the sight at her hourglass figure. An instant later he performed a Sarutobi and fell backwards as his face was covered in blood.

Haruhi looked over to see the most powerful hokage out like a light. A massive grin and a little drool were added to the blood. She couldn't help but laugh at him. _'This man is very… interesting.'_

A knock came to avert her attention. "Is everything alright?" It was the same girl from before.

'_Does she stalk him?' _She wondered to herself until she looked down and saw her state of dress; or rather, lack of. "Could you find me some clothes? He tore the ones I had."

"Y-Y-Yes, m-ma'am!" It was clear that she thought Minato ripped them to get at what's underneath. Haruhi smiled at imagining the girls red face.

"What have I gotten into?" Haruhi asked herself. She looked over at Minato and blushed. _'Why do I feel like this around him? He's only human.'_

After a few hours of reflection on what she was going to do, she noticed Minato starting to stir from his sleep.

Minato was finally waking from the fantasy he was having. He wasn't sure if what had happened earlier was a dream or not; until he saw her, that is.

It was night and the moon was in full force. There she was, staring at the moon on the balcony, her eyes glimmering in the light. He quickly noticed the clothes. She was wearing a dark blue cheongsam; other than the sliver trims, it was rather plain. It was the only thing they could find for her. Haruhi still made it look amazing though.

Someone with something close to Tsunada's body type isn't easy to accommodate. Nothing was exposed, but that being said, it left little to the imagination.

Her hair was snow white and it traveled to the crook of her back, though what really stood out was how her hair would slowly change to a dark red. White would turn to yellow, then orange, and finally red. It all blended together, giving it a look no one else in the world could have.

She was leaning on the railing, which, consequently, also gave Minato a nice view of her backside. He was starting to walk over to where she placed herself, when she called out.

"So, finally awake are we?" She could smell him closing the distance. She didn't turn. She just continued to admire the sun.

He stopped moving when he was about 5 feet away from her. Him stopping caused her to turn her head to look at him. This allowed Minato to finally notice the whisker marks on her cheeks. Yet another exotic trait only she has.

He glanced back at her butt. A red tint covered his face and he fought to prevent a nosebleed. Noticing this she stood straight up and turned to face him. The light from the moon gave her a glow. "Don't pass out on me again. I don't think my excuse will work a second time."

"Uhhh… what excuse?" His eyebrows lifted in confusion.

"Well, I had to tell that red face girl something as to why you were out on the floor."

"Which was?"

"We tried something new and I wore you out." She said with a smile. She had enjoyed the look on the girls face when she explained this.

Minato however turned a shade of red not seen by human eyes.

"I hope you don't mind. I need a place to stay and heal. Then I'll be on my way. Sometimes you have to play games to get things done. Would you be so kind as to play along?" She added the last part in a seductive manner.

"I don't think I can do that." Haruhi's eyes widened as the blush on Minato's face was gone in an instant.

The look of pure determination had claimed his face, as if he was on a mission of grave importance. She could feel the charisma surge from the man. Once again, it was the eyes that paralyzed her. Those blue eyes showed something she had never seen before in the man, or any man.

Minato moved towards her with purposeful steps. He stopped right in front of her, less than a foot away. Azul and crimson never left each other. He lifted his right hand to her cheek and lightly traced her whisker marks on her ivory skin. The touch, clearly of affection, was not unwanted, but it snapped her back to reality.

"What are you doing?" Her voice was barely above a whisper. Her body wasn't listening to her commands to back up. _'He is a mere human and he is doing this to me!'_

"Why?" She said in a panicked tone. "You don't know me. I'm not even human. You don't know why I'm here. You…"

Her last sentence was cut off as their lips met in a passionate kiss. Her eyes widened for a second and then narrowed. Her hand slowly moved up. Not to force him away, but to embrace him.

After a minute his face pulled back. He watched her to see her reaction. He was smiling at what he saw. "We'll deal with that later. You'll be staying for a while."

"Hai" She whispered. Her eyes glazed looking up at him.

"So, since you're staying, mind telling me why you were injured in the woods?" His hand was still stroking her cheek.

"Hai" She said, almost exactly the same as before. Eyes still glazed.

"Well?" He asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Hai" Still glazed.

"Hello?" A worried look moved onto his face. The hand on her cheek moved in front of her face and waved back and forth across her face.

No reaction other than the "Hai"

"Am I really that good?"

"Hai"

That took him a little off guard, but an idea popped into his head. He jumped back arms spread out. "You fell for me because I'm the strongest and greatest ninja alive."

"Hai"

"Because I'm handsome," he promptly takes a pose.

"Hai"

"Because I'm intelligent," and he took another pose.

"Hai"

"Because nothing is sexier than me," taking upon a pose that would disgrace the name of Hokage.

"Hai"

"Because you couldn't live without my butt, which is nicer than yours," turning around to stick said object out for her.

"You arrogant son of a bitch," came a dangerously low voice.

'_Oh shit.' _He slowly turned around, trembling.

He was met with a fist to the face and before he even hit the ground, her leg was lifted and slammed down on him repeatedly.

"I remember everything ass." She yelled. After several minutes of Haruhi imitating a jackhammer and Minato rolling around, doing his best to protect his vitals, they finally took a breather and calmed down. Both sat next to each other on the bed.

"You believe in love at first sight?" Minato asked.

"No." was her reply. She was still a little angry with the man.

"Neither did I." He grabbed her hand and intertwined their fingers.

"You're not going to let me say 'no', are you?" She stated more then asked, looking at their hands. Her fingers closed around his.

"No." He whispered moving in to kiss her. "You don't what me to." She tilted her head up to meet his lips.

"Hai," Their lips met. After they broke his free hand stroked her cheek.

"Come on, let's get some sleep. We'll talk tomorrow."

As they moved to get some sleep, she quickly made a decision not to tell him what happened. Especially concerning her brother. Not yet at least. It was still too painful. Not to mention some of it was a family secret. However, she truly did fall for a man she barely knew.

Maybe… she could stay here.

6 months went by.

Minato and Haruhi were almost inseparable during that time. Their love only grew stronger as the days went by. The village wasn't too happy with a complete stranger from nowhere becoming their leader's lover. The fact that Minato was caught in bed with the woman only served to help the rumors explode.

2 weeks after the encounter and the whole village knew of the girl, but little else. Other than a few people, no one knew exactly what she looked like. Questions ranged from what her eyes looked like to where she came from, and when she got here. They weren't even sure if she was from the land of fire.

The civilians, after a couple months, settled down. They wanted to at least see her, but as there relationship progressed, the worrying died down. The people figured they would see her eventually.

The clans, on the other hand, were another story.

Once Minato became hokage, he also became the most eligible bachelor in all of Konoha, if not the whole of Fire Country. All the clans wanted him to marry into their clan. This would serve to indirectly give the clan that 'won his heart', so to speak, more influence and power.

The Uchiha even went as far as to order all women within the clan to seduce him, even the married ones. They didn't care whom, so long as it was from their clan.

Minato easily saw through this and avoided unwanted situations like the plague. Haruhi, being a Kyuubi, easily avoided the clan spies trying to get any information on her.

Danzo was beyond pissed as his personal ninja came back with, "She is about this tall" over and over again. This didn't help things, as it only proved she had the skills to avoid jonin level ninja.

Minato and Haruhi agreed to keep things like this for know. Minato didn't want his enemies to go after Haruhi, and Haruhi didn't want people to know she was a Kyuubi. Not that it would be easy to tell. They doubted anyone would find out, even if she was captured and tortured. They wanted to play it safe.

Only 3 people knew the truth, Sarutobi, Kakashi, and Rin. The conversation didn't go well with Sarutobi when he learned the truth, to say the least. A week of cussing and yelling everywhere helped him come to terms with it. The encounter in the woods was what finally got his approval.

Sarutobi was marching around trying to find Minato. He had already checked every place he could think of. Till he remembered Minato saying something about where he found her.

That was where he was heading towards now. He was going to yell at him again. _'Couldn't that blond idiot see that a demon would put the village __in danger__?'_ That's when he saw them and his anger drained.

Minato was sitting against a tree and Haruhi was sitting against him. The sun shined on them as it broke through the trees. Minato was stroking her hair, affection written all over his face.

There was no doubt at all that he loved her.

On Haruhi's lap was an injured fox pup, which had a nasty looking gash on its leg. Haruhi performed some hand seals, and her right hand began to glow green. She quickly placed her hand over the wound, and after a few seconds, the fox stood up and looked up at her, as if to say 'thank you'. The wound was gone as if it was never there. She gently patted it on the head and smiled. With that, the fox left.

Sarutobi just stared.

He had heard that Kyuubis were natural disasters that destroy everything in their path, like a living typhoon. If what they say were true, left unchecked, Haruhi would be a grave threat to everyone, especially the village. However after that display…He wasn't sure what to think.

Then he looked at Minato. The man had saved Konoha several times and asked for nothing in return. He was the hokage. The way his face looked, he was truly happy.

"Dammit, how do you always get everyone to agree with you and not even try?" Sighing, "I'll give them my blessing later."

He whispered all this to himself, as he started to turn away.

"Thank you."

Sarutobi froze. He turned to see Haruhi smiling at him. "How did…" He was cut off with her quick reply.

"Kyuubi" Haruhi said, still smiling. She was pointing at the fox ears clearly sticking out for the world to see. She had kept them hidden before.

Sarutobi let out a sigh, turned, and started walking away. _'Don't remind me.'_

"He didn't even say anything to me." Minato said with a frown watching him go.

"He just accepted us. Give him a bit more time." Haruhi went back to leaning on her Minato.

Minato couldn't take it anymore. He started to scratch her fox ears. This caused her to moan. "We could have kept the fox."

"You and your pets. Remember the monkey?" The scratching stopped to Haruhi's dismay.

"Won't anyone let that go?" Minato was pouted and it was adorable.

Haruhi turned and looked him in the eye. "No, you will just have to play with me." She said playfully. She moved closer and kissed him. He embraced her and added more force on his end.

After braking apart, "When he starts talking to me again, I'll ask him to marry us."

"You humans and your ceremonies," Sounding disappointed in the species. Minato knew better; she could hardly wait for that day to come.

"I still have to tell my team. I hope they don't act like Sarutobi," Worry clearly in his voice.

"They won't, those two are nothing like Sarutobi. Besides, they love me." Rin and Kakashi were the closest thing to kids she had at the moment.

Minato laughed lightly. "Yah well, I figured we will be married in 4 weeks."

With that both turned back to the sun and smiled. Both were thinking of the future.

7 Weeks later. Sarutobi took longer to come around than excpected.

They were at their wedding. It was a small wedding, a very_,_ small wedding. Sarutobi, Rin, Kakashi and Jiraiya were the only other people there.

When Minato told his team that Haruhi was a Kyuubi, both Haruhi and Minato were happy to see their reaction.

Rin immediately ran up to Haruhi and started to ask questions, to which Haruhi happily answered what she could, while avoiding any questions that would give away her age like the plague. Kakashi's eye widened a little bit, and then went back to its lazy normal self. He shrugged and that was that.

Jiraiya was the only one not told yet. Minato had his reasons. It wasn't that he didn't trust Jiraiya. He just didn't what to deal with the line of jokes and teasing he would get.

He also didn't want to deal with another Sarutobi. Jiraiya would be pissed if he found out. He would be fine after a while. Still Minato just didn't want to mess with a good thing.

The reason for the small wedding was because an Iwa spy was captured. After some prodding by Ibiki the head of the interrogation department, they learned that he was there to get information on Haruhi. Upon hearing this Minato immediately decided to keep the wedding a secret, so as to protect his wife.

It would be one thing if she was a powerful Konohichi, but she is a 9-tailed fox. That information, should it get out, would bring all the elemental villages, including Fire, down upon her.

He didn't want that risk. A wedding would only increase the amount of spies. He wasn't the strongest Hokage without a price.

When the day was over, Minato and Haruhi lay in each other's arms. Sweating and out of breath. Haruhi was enjoying the feel of the ring on her finger. Minato enjoyed the feel of his wife between his arms.

Haruhi was walking through the woods near area 44.

Minato was dealing with the evil blood sucking, baby-killing, thing he called paper work. He would be at it all day.

Haruhi knew, not many people came by here. She still stayed in human form, just to be safe. She was pregnant and wanted some time to think, mostly on how to spoil the little runt when it gets here.

She was very happy. If you told her she would me married and pregnant several months ago, she would have squealed and asked 'with whom?'…but that was beside the point.

' _I can't believe a human makes me feel this way. He so caring and loving and a complete pain in my ass, but I still love him. I wonder what…is some one crying?'_

Haruhi pumped some chakra into her ears, and sure enough there was crying. Haruhi followed the sound deeper into the woods. She didn't want to be noticed by whomever it was that was making that noise. Creeping up on the person, she finally saw her.

The girl was not much older than 15. She had purple hair tied up into a weird spiked style and was wearing dark brown shorts, along with a reddish brown shirt. Her face was buried in her hands, Haruhi barely making out what she was saying in between sobs.

"Why do…sob…they hate me…sob…I didn't do anything…he betrayed…me sobbing…too…" What really caught Haruhi's attention was the blood running down her back. Finally, she couldn't take it.

Haruhi moved from the bushes toward the crying girl. However, the noise from such an action alerted the girl to Haruhi's presences. Jumping up and drawing a kunai, she took a defensive stance to defend herself. It didn't even faze Haruhi; she just kept walking to the girl.

"Who are you? What do you want?" The girl with tears still in her eyes demanded.

Haruhi just kept walking.

"Stay back…sniff…I'm a ninja! I know how to kill!" She wasn't going to kill anyone. She was just hoping that it would scare the women away.

Haruhi just kept walking towards her. The girl wasn't sure what to do. She never ran from anyone and she wasn't going to start. The girl looked into Haruhi's eyes however, and froze.

There was something in them that the girl hadn't seen in a long time. It was the look a mother gave to her child that needed comforting. The girl had been glared and hissed at for so long now she had forgotten what that look, well, looked like. The girl was even more confused. _'Why is she giving me that look? Doesn't she hate me like the rest?'_

Haruhi took one last step and dropped to her knees right in front of the girl and before the girl could act, she wrapped her arms around her.

The girl was at a loss. She had no idea what to do. On one hand, she wanted to shove the women away and run, yes run. She was willing to forget her pride just this once.

However, something inside her forced her to stay. The hug this woman gave her was comforting and something the girl needed desperately. "It's okay. I'm here now. So long as I'm here you'll never be alone."

Alone, that's exactly how she felt. Ever since Orochimaru left her and the village, she had been unwanted. No one would go near her. She wasn't even wanted in her own clan, her family, and her own mother. They gave her glares and names behind her back.

Snake bitch, Orochimaru's whore, traitorous slut, she heard them all.

Haruhi knew all this. She didn't get out much, but she heard rumors from the tower staff. She knew who the girl was and truly felt sorry for her. It wasn't her fault that her sensei betrayed the village, and from what she heard, the girl was tricked into following.

The girl came back and gave them all the information she could; so why did the village hate her? That was what ran through Haruhi's mind. The girl couldn't take anymore. Dropping the kunai, she embraced the women she hardly knew and cried onto the women's shoulder.

After about 5 minutes, the sobs began to die down, and the girl was calm enough to speak.

"Why? Why would you do this for me?" The girl asked sniffing a few times.

Haruhi just smiled. "I know who you are, Mitarashi Anko. I also know why you are crying out here by yourself."

Anko just looked at her. '_If she knew that, then why?' _

"I don't think what the village is doing to you is right and I want to help. If you'll let me." Haruhi wasn't even sure what she was doing. She blamed her pregnancy, but every child she saw she just wanted to run over and hold them. Her mother instincts demanded she take care of Anko if no one else would.

"But, why?" Anko asked again.

Haruhi laughed a little. "I don't know. I guess I always wanted a daughter." This took Anko aback. She wanted her as a daughter. Anko wasn't sure to cry again or scream 'Crazy lady!' and run. A warm fuzzy feeling at the back of her head brought her back to reality.

"How did you get that wound on your head?"

Anko felt it wouldn't hurt to answer. "An asshole threw a rock at me."

Haruhi scowled at that. She honestly couldn't understand. After fixing up Anko's wound the same way she fixed the fox's wound, she stood up and grabbed Anko's hand.

"Come on, my husband will be done with his paper work soon, and we can all have lunch. Also, we should get you showered and changed." Anko simply nodded and followed. Someone was trying to take care of her when everyone else abandoned her. Haruhi just smiled. As long as Anko allowed, she would take care of her as a daughter.

He was running faster than he ever had. After he'd acquired the items, he immediately made for the hokage tower.

Everyone had turned down the S-class mission. Some even threatened to resign if they were force to do said mission. He couldn't say that he blamed them. Minato was up the stairs of the tower in seconds. He opened the bedroom door.

"Hey…I got…" His head dodged to the left, effectively shutting him up. A kunai flew past his head at a speed he could barely keep track of. He was out of breath too. He would've patted himself on the back if he weren't in such a hurry.

"Do you have it? Where is it? Give it to me, NOW!!!"

His loving wife, Haruhi, was putting a massive amount of killer intent on him. Chakra was visibly flowing out of her. He had to put a seal up 6 months ago to prevent the killer intent from reaching the villagers. The last Jonin that tried to help passed out from the intent alone. Minato didn't even want to think what would happen to the civilians.

Minato closed the door and quickly made his way over to where she was situated, sitting up against the headboard. Minato pulled out a scroll and laid it out on the bed. Opening it, he performed a few hand signs and slammed his hand on the paper. There was a puff of smoke.

When it cleared, a steaming bowl of rice and steamed vegetables greeted them. Minato took the bowl in both hands and held it out to his wife. Head bowed, he resembled a man giving a sacrifice to his god. He was sweating, praying he got it right the first time. Haruhi took the bowl and lifted it to her nose. Minato lifted his head enough to see his wife take a few sniffs and smile.

Minato released the air he had been holding and sighed. Closing his eyes in relief he didn't see how everything went so wrong. "IT'S WRONG!!" Haruhi yelled in anger and disgust. Minato looked up in time to see a bowl of steamed vegetables and rice slam into his face.

"GET ME SOMETHING ELSE!" She yelled in the same tone.

She was 7 months pregnant. Her cravings just got worse, and had become way more unpredictable. She had started out irritable. Now she was down right hostile. Minato thanked Kami that she was only like this when she was craving a meal.

Minato wiped the food from his face and repeated the hand seals. A bowl of hot ramen puffed into existence. He visibly cringed. He handed her the food, never taking his eyes off her. Getting hit with hot food was one thing. Getting hit with hot broth was another. Haruhi took the bowl sniffed it a couple times. Finally, she took her chopsticks and began eating. Minato smiled at his wife eating for two, and himself, for not wearing the ramen.

"Got it on the 2nd try. That a record." Haruhi said in between bights.

"If you hadn't scared the help..." Minato stated in a flat tone.

"Don't give me that look. I can't help it if she couldn't take a little anger." Haruhi defended herself.

"Uchiha Makoto was a jonin who fought in some of the largest battles during the war. We fought some tough battles side by side. She can handle a little anger. You overloaded her with killer intent." Minato said. He got up began cleaning the mess she made.

"If you like her so much, why don't you marry her?" Haruhi, rather childishly in fact, stated, clearly annoyed at her husband defending another women against her.

"Don't do that. You know I didn't mean it like that way, but thank you for being jealous," Minato beamed.

"Yeah, yeah," waving him off. "So when are we going to tell the village, Anko-chan, and Kashi-kun?"

"When the baby is born. We'll show them the adoption papers then. The village can wait till you feel better; I'm going to need your help protecting him."

"What makes you think it's a boy?" She asked as she finished the ramen off. "Ugh I hate this stuff." Haruhi scrunched her face, causing Minato to smile.

Minato moved onto the bed, the smile never leaving his face. "You've got a naruto on your face."

"What naruto?" She lifted her hand to her cheek and there was a naruto there, but that was soon forgotten. "NARUTO!! That's it! If it's a boy than he will be Naruto," A look of revelation all over her face.

Minato was taken back by this, but quickly regrouped. He reached over and plucked the ramen topping off her face and ate it.

"Naruto huh. Not exactly what I had in mind, but it's a good name. Let's not tell him you got it from a ramen topping." His grin was from ear to ear.

Haruhi couldn't help but smile back at her husband. She was soon lost in thought for a girl's name, while Minato left to finish his paper work for the day.

"Mind telling me what happened?" A very pissed and irritated voice hissed at Minato.

"My wife gave birth to our son." Minato stated in a matter-of-fact tone. He was also irritated with his sensei for dragging him away from his wife and newborn child.

Jiraiya was leaning against the wall outside the makeshift delivery room. It was clear Haruhi would not have been able to go to the hospital as soon as she went into labor.

"Don't give me that brat! I thought having the baby here was weird, but I figured you had your reasons." Jiraiya did find it odd that she was giving birth in the tower and not the hospital.

Also, a room covered in seals to prevent killer intent from leaving the room had peeked his interest. What really got his attention was the mass of chakra that emanating from the room. The seals were designed for killer intent, not chakra.

"The chakra coming from your wife wasn't normal. Sure, any jonin and under wouldn't have been able to tell the difference, but I've been around way too long not to have noticed. Not to mention the amountof chakra. Not even you have that much. Now tell me, what's going on?" Jiraiya kept a low steady tone through the whole conversation.

During the childbirth, Haruhi had expelled so much chakra she was exhausted, and considering she was a 9-tailed fox, that meant a lot of chakra. Needless to say, it didn't go unnoticed. Every shinobi and some civilians for several miles felt the chakra.

Minato knew Jiraiya was demanding the truth. He honestly had planned to tell him, just… preferably under better conditions. Well, now was as good a time as any.

"She's…" Minato paused. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath in an attempt to calm him self. When he was done he open his eye and look straight into Jiraiya's eyes. "She is a Kyuubi."

That simple statement was not what he was expecting.

"You expect me to bel…" He was cut off when he got a good look at Minato's eyes. There was no hint of a bluff, no backing down as if to say 'I'm pulling your leg.' "You're kidding. No way…." Both were more statements of shock rather than questions.

"No I'm not. She still hasn't told me why she is here; however I don't particularly care. I am married to a 9 tailed fox, and I love her." Minato stated with more force and determination than before.

"Is that so? _DO YOU KNOW HOW MUCH DANGER YOU'RE PUTTING THE VILLAGE IN_.!?!" Jiraiya exploded.

Minato, in all his years with Jiraiya, had never seen the man like this.

Minato was about to say something when an ANBU appeared and bowed to the men. "Hokage-sama, there is a situation!" Even with a mask on, it was clear the man had hauled ass to get there.

Jiraiya and Minato look at each other and agreed to a truce without saying a word. Turning back to the ANBU, he asked; "What kind of situation?" It comes out harsher than he meant, but he was in the middle of something pretty important.

"A massive creature is moving its way toward Konoha! The outposts in its way have all been destroyed. Survivors say it looked like a giant fox with 9 tails." The ANBU reported without raising his head.

Minato blinked in shock. He quickly collected himself and switch to Hokage mode instantly. "Have all the Genin evacuate the civilians. Anyone with the rank of Chunin and up must set up a perimeter around the creature. Try and lure it away from the village; buy as much time as possible for the civilians."

"Hai Hokage-sama!" With that the ANBU was gone.

"SEE WHAT I MEAN! YOU MAY LOVE HARUHI, BUT THE ONE COMING HERE IS CLEARLY HOSTILE!! YOU JUST CAN'T KILL ONE OF THESE THINGS! WE ARE IN SOME DEEP SHIT!" Jiraiya was back to being pissed. Who could blame him? A massive and powerful demon was attacking his home.

"Yell at me later. We need to figure out a way to stop…"

"You can't." Haruhi was standing at the doorway, leaning on one side of the frame for support. She was still in her gown; her hair was a mess and she was also covered in sweat. In short, she looked like shit. "At your current level of power… He would literally eat you alive."

Both men look at her and digested the words she had just spoken. Minato realized something from what she had said. "'He'? Do you know who the Kyuubi is?"

"Judging from his aura… It's my brother." She informed in a flat tone. "He must have felt the chakra I expelled just then."

Once again both men went silent from her words. Jiraiya was the first to recover this time. "If he is your brother, then why is he attacking us? He knows you're here. Why not take human form? Surely you don't think he believes you're being held captive?"

The serious face he held up until know turned to one of confusion at Haruhi's laughter. He could hear the bitterness behind it. Once she quieted down she explained.

"My brother is coming to kill me. I have something he wants, and I'm not giving it to him." Though Haruhi said this with a smile, her eyes held fear in them. A demonic chakra spike hit them and all three snapped their heads in the direction of the offending Kyuubi. "It's been a little over a year since I ran. I thought I had lost him."

Minato snapped his head back around, quickly putting the pieces together. "That is around the time I found you. You need to tell me what's going on, now." The last word came out harsher than he intended, but given the circumstances… He didn't care.

"I do not have to tell you anything. This information is equivalent to something higher than your S-class secrets." Haruhi's eyes were glowing. She wasn't happy with the tone her husband had just given her, but she knew the reasons why he did.

She took a deep breath and locked eyes with Minato. She stuck her hand out, opening it as if to offer a gift. A gold chakra ball formed. Inside the ball was a swirl of chakra of a darker shade, forming a key. When it was finished she began her story.

"He wants this. It is the key to the doorway that leads to the afterlife." Minato and Jiraiya's eyes widened. "We are short on time, so do not ask any questions. My clan has been the protectors of this key for countless centuries. I honestly don't know how far back it goes. Normally the key gets handed down to the strongest among us.

"My father did something unprecedented though; he gave the second strongest the key, namely, me. He knew that my brother would take the key and open the door, regardless of the consequences. You see if he opened the door, he would become a god. He could destroy and create worlds on a whim."

"However, the reason no one has done so before was because of the second legend. That is, if the doorway was to be opened, this world will end, along with the person who opened it. There have been others who have tried. My brother was the only one that could have succeeded. Even by Kyuubi standards, his power was enormous; he was called the strongest to ever live."

"When he attacked me for the key, my clan tried to intervene. I watched him kill everyone, but 3. If he is here, they are dead as well." Tears were flowing freely from her eyes.

Minato and Jiraiya were made speechless by the news. This had just become bigger than the village, much bigger. Jiraiya swallowed a very stubborn piece of saliva and managed to speak. "If he is so powerful, why hasn't he finished us off yet?"

"Our power is near infinite compared to you. However, while it takes weeks for you to recover chakra from a serious battle, sometimes a month, for us it takes decades to a century. He fought and killed an entire clan of Kyuubis; I don't see him being anywhere close to his normal abilities for a long time."

Minato stepped forward, once again taking the mantle of Hokage. "What do you suggest?"

Haruhi thought it over quickly. "Seal him. We'll need someone young. An inanimate object would be to difficult, and anyone too old would die, so the younger the better."

Minato bit his lip drawing blood. He turned to Jiraiya. The look in the man's eyes told him that he was thinking the same thing. Jiraiya moved past Haruhi. She withdrew her hand, and watched as Jiraiya made his way to Naruto.

Realization then dawned on Haruhi. Right before she could lunge for Naruto, two powerful arms grabbed her from behind.

"NO!!! LET ME GO!! YOU'RE NOT USING NARUTO!!! I SAID LET ME GO!! MINATO, HE'S TAKING NARUTO!!!" She was screaming. Tears were virtually fighting to leave her eyes. She was struggling, but she was drained of chakra. Minato moved Haruhi out of Jiraiya's way as he started to leave.

Jiraiya stopped at the door and without turning around, "I'll get Naruto ready. Make sure you finish the seal in 15 minutes on your end." Regret seethed from his voice and with that he was gone.

Haruhi turned on Minato. "HOW COULD YOU!! HE'S YOUR SON!!"

"AND THAT IS EXACTLY THE REASON I CHOSE HIM!!"

The tone of her husband quickly shut her up. She had never heard this tone before. Wide eyed she looked up and saw something she would never forget.

It was despair, regret, sadness, and several other emotions that had a similar effect. He was crying more than she was. "It has to be him. His blood will make it easier to seal your brother. He is also the only one I trust for this. I can't ask another family to sacrifice their child. It has to be him. It has to be Naruto."

He was right. She hated it more than anything, but he was right. Haruhi collapsed to her knees, crying. Minato wrapped himself around her. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry." They held each for a few minutes crying. When they were done, Minato wiped his tears and left for the front.

Haruhi took longer to gather herself. When she was done, a look of pure determination became her mask for the pain. She slowly made her way to the dresser in the room. She will not just sit back and cry through the whole ordeal. She was going to fight. As she pulled one of the shelves, a large assortment of ninja pills revealed themselves to her. She grabbed every soldier pill she could find and ate them as fast as possible. When she was done, she jumped out the window and rushed to find her husband.

Minato was not having a good time. Sarutobi was a good mile away after taking a hit from one of the Kyuubi's tails. Everyone else was just barely holding out. The death toll was already high. Gamabunta the toad boss was on his last little bit of chakra just from protecting Minato.

Minato was going through the hand seals for the kinjutsu, as fast and carefully as he could. He had no idea if Jiraiya was ready, but he trusted the old pervert.

"How much more time do you need?" Gamabunta yelled to the man on his head.

"Not long! Just 10 more seconds!" Minato answered.

"WE DON'T HAVE 10 SECONDS!!"

Minato looked up just in time to see the over grown fox swallow a large ball of chakra. The fox looked right at him, those red eyes bearing into his very being. Time seemed to slow down as they stared at each other.

At the same time, Minato slammed his hand onto the toad boss's head, completing the seal, while Kyuubi shot the ball of pure chakra right at him.

"I can't stop that!!" Gamabunta yelled in a panic.

"Doesn't matter…it's done." Minato smirked. He accepted his fate.

Just before the blast hit, everything slowed to a crawl. A blur moved directly between the blast and Minato, a blur with white hair.

"Kitsune no Doryuheki Jutsu." Haruhi stuck her hands out and a wall of red chakra was created.

Minato watched as his wife barely held off the incredibly powerful blast. Somehow, she managed though. As the blast faded, so did her shield. Her brother gave an ear-shattering roar and collapsed, disappearing in a flash of light. Haruhi turned and smiled at her love.

"Minato, please take care of our son." Haruhi didn't hold back the tears. She was fading away like sand being blow in the wind, starting from her feet and moving up.

Minato reach out to her, but he never touched her as the last little bit of her disappeared, a whispered "I love you" could be heard.

Minato dropped to his knees. He was in shock at what just happened. He just stared at the spot Haruhi was last seen. "But… I won't be here either."

Those were his last words as 5 shinigami all drew a blade, and skewered the bewildered man.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.**

12 years later.

A feral groan could be heard through an isolated part of Konoha's woods, as two heavy eye lids slowly lifted to reveal a pair of red inhuman eyes. Haruhi was lying on her side in a small clearing. It was a beautiful day, which on any other occasion, would have been enjoyable.

Haruhi lifted her head and took in her surroundings, wincing from the pain at every move she made. Her whole body was sore, as if every muscle was overused. She gave herself a once over to see the damage.

She was currently in fox form, about the size of a large dog. There were no wounds from what she could see, but it still hurt to move. Mentally she was very confused on how she got there. She couldn't remember what happened. She figured the best way to start was to get her bearings.

Slowly, she got up and started to check her range of motion. She lifted one leg as far as she could, until the pain was too much. Making a mental note, she repeated the process with her other limbs. When she had finished, she was pleased to see that, for the most part, she could move normally without to much trouble.

Next, she checked her chakra levels. She wasn't so happy about that; she barely had any. She would have placed herself at low genin in terms of power with how much she had. As she looked around, a tree caught her eye.

It was taller than the others, and if she could get to the top she could see for miles around. She thus decided that this was the best place to start. Climbing the tree took longer than she expected, but she eventually found a branch that could reasonably support her.

Taking in the sights, she could see Konoha stand in the distance. It was 2 or 3 miles out, but there it stood. Looking at it jogged her memories and that blank spot began to fill. She remembered everything. Her brother's attack, her sacrifice to save Minato, her son Naruto.

'_Naruto,'_ the thought of forgetting her son brought a sharp pain to her chest. The thought of never seeing her son merely intensified the pain. She was alive though.

How was she alive? She remembered using up all of her chakra to hold off her brother's attack. The incredulous thoughts of 'I shouldn't be alive' however were soon changed to 'I can be with my son and husband'.

She looked out towards Konoha and noticed that there were no damaged buildings, at least from what she could see. Her eyes drifted to the hokage tower and thoughts of her family flooded her mindscape. She was getting more excited to see them.

She couldn't have been out of it for that long. Someone would have found her, right? As Haruhi climbed down the tree and made her way to the tower, more questions arose.

'_How did the battle go? Is everyone all right? Did the sealing work?____The sealing!!'_

The idea that her son would have her shit-head of a brother inside him angered her to no end. She understood that it was the only way. She still hated it and she was going to make sure Minato and Jiraiya knew it.

If she could gather enough chakra in 3 years, she could extract her brother and in his weakened state from being forcefully dragged out of Naruto, Minato could kill him. After 3 years though, the process would kill her son.

"MY NAME IS UZUMAKI NARUTO…"

'_What?'_ The words brought Haruhi back to earth. _'The academy? Did I really space that whole way? And that voice said Uzumaki Naruto. That's my _son's_ name.'_

The rest of the words the voice yelled to the heavens were ignored as she looked to the roof. Apparently, she had been walking for an hour or so till she exited the forest directly behind the academy. The academy was directly left of the tower, separated by a street and 2 walls.

Her curiosity overpowering her, she climbed the wall to the roof. She thought that at most a week went by. Naruto was a newborn, not many people should know that name yet. As she reached the top of the school, she was met with the sight of 4 people situating at the far end of the roof.

Of the four, the man standing made eye contact with Haruhi. Haruhi could make out the look of shock on what little of his face you could see. Images of Minato's student, Kashi-kun, flashed through her head. The man however was way too old to be her Kashi-kun.

'_How come I haven't seen this man before?'_ Haruhi didn't get out much, but every single ninja had to go through the tower at one point or another, allowing her to at least have a good glance at them.

"Kakashi-sensei… are you okay?" The bright blond asked.

Haruhi looked at the boy who just spoke and froze. _'Minato?' _The back of that boys head reminded her of her husband. The hair color was identical to Minato and only Minato has that hair color.

Haruhi started to walk closer to the group. The dark haired boy turned to see what exactly had made Kakashi speechless. Turned out, what he saw was not even close to what he expected. His eyes widened to the size of dinner plates, taking him a several seconds to register what he was seeing.

Once his brain processed the information, he was on his feet with a kunai in hand. This had alerted the other 2 children to her. They followed a similar process of shock, awe, and finally aggression.

Haruhi stopped instantly. She wasn't expecting this. The situation did give her a good look at them though. The girl had bright pink hair and wore a red cheongsam, standing out like a sore thumb. She was also the only one scared shitless and had yet to draw a kunai.

The man that resembled a scarecrow was indeed an older version of Kashi-kun. Silver hair, face mask, hiathi-ati covering his left eye. All were things they had in common.

The black haired boy was wearing a blue shirt. His eyes dared her to attack. Not the smartest thing to do to a Kyuubi.

The last child was wearing a bright orange jumpsuit, but Haruhi ignored it for his face. He had Minato's eyes and her whisker marks.

"I-I-Is t-that a n-n-nine tailed f-fox?" Pinky asked to no one.

Haruhi ignored her and unconsciously walk up to the blond boy. He was the spitting image of Minato. She moved until she was no more than 3 feet away, just staring at him. No one had made a move, not wanting to be the first to fight a creature they were all taught to fear and hate.

Naruto was by far in the worst condition mentally to deal with this right now. After Mizuki's announcement, he had been dealing with it rather well with Iruka's help. This, however, was not helping things. Thoughts of actually being the monster were still in the back of his mind.

'_Why is it staring at me? Does it know about the one inside me? Did it come here for me?'_ He had a kunai in a death grip. His knuckles were white. His eyes were wide and he was visibly shaking.

"Haruhi-chan?"

All heads snapped to the older man so fast it, was a wonder no on snapped their neck.

"Haruhi-chan, is that you." Silence was his only answer.

All 4 of them were looking at Kakashi like he grew a third head. The genin were trying to wrap their head around their sensei knowing a Kyuubi. Haruhi was trying to place the man with no luck.

"It's me, Kakashi." He motioned to himself.

"Kashi-kun… that's not possible. You're too old." Kakashi had only seen her fox form once at her wedding. Rin had begged to see it. He never forgot how she looked. It was one of the most beautiful things he ever saw.

The genin, however, couldn't believe she called him Kashi-kun. The idea of a talking fox was more plausible.

"It's been 12 years. Where have you been this whole time?" Kakashi walked up to Haruhi. He stood right next to Naruto and kneeled to be eye level with her.

"12 years!!" Haruhi's eyes were saucers. If it were possible her jaw would have fallen off. _'12 years, it can't be…'_

"Kakashi-sensei, do you know…this Kyuubi?" The pink haired girl was about to say it, but thought better about insulting a very powerful demon to its face.

Kakashi was about to answer when all heads turned to the fox. What the 4 shinobi saw would forever be ingrained in their memory.

Haruhi, a Kyuubi, feared by everyone in the fire nation, a creature know as being an unstoppable natural disaster, was…hyperventilating.

'_12 years, 12 years, oh Kami 12 years.'_ Her world was turned upside down. She looked up at the man who was in his mid to late twenties. Memories of him in his early teens flooded back. Images of Minato soon fallowed. _'How is Minato? What does he look like? Did he find some one else? This has to be a lie. It has to be.'_

"Oi, calm down. Close your eyes and take deep breaths," Naruto ordered her, being the good guy. Without thinking Haruhi fallowed the orders. The effect was slow going, but it worked.

"Naruto, how did you know what to do?" Sakura turned to ask. She was impressed. She would never admit it, but she was.

The blond was about to answer that he has gone through the same thing once or twice. Throughout his life, he had been put through a lot. It was only natural that he would have picked up a few things other people his age didn't know.

"Naruto."

Everyone was once again looking at Haruhi. The word was spoken barely above a whisper. Haruhi was staring wide eyed at Naruto.

"You're called Uzumaki Naruto?" Her eyes now had pleading look in them. She was begging him to say no, and that she would wake up from this dream.

Naruto didn't like the idea of Haruhi showing interest in him, especially after the Mizuki incident. He nodded regardless, not entirely willing to answer verbally.

Haruhi watched him for a few seconds. She then turned to Kakashi for confirmation. It was weird reading the body language of a fox, but he managed and nodded. Haruhi turned back to Naruto again.

She took in his features, his untamed blond hair, his deep blue eye, his whisker marks that resembled hers, and finally his smell. It was familiar, different in the fact it wasn't Minato, but it was close enough. That was all the proof that she needed to prove it wasn't a lie.

This 12-year-old boy, that was the spitting image of Minato with her whiskers…

It would have been a touching moment, if it weren't for the high pitch squeak and sudden thud, informing everyone she had passed out.

After a couple of minutes Haruhi woke up. During that time, Kakashi had informed Team 7 of how he knew Haruhi. He left out a lot of information, but they got the idea that they were close friends. Kakashi motioned for Haruhi to join him up front, which she followed.

Haruhi was back to normal, as normal could get for a 9 tailed fox who hasn't been around for 12 years could get. The whole 12-year thing was still eating at her though. She accepted it though. Just looking at Kashi-kun and Naruto was all the proof she needed, but it only added to the questions.

Haruhi was brought out of her train of thought as Kakashi started to talk.

"Now does anyone have any questions about how I know Haruhi-chan?" None of the genin made a move. Kakashi took that as a no and smiled at this. "Good, now I know what's going to happen when the Hokage is informed about Haruhi."

His face promptly hardened. "This will be an S-class secret. If any of you tell _anyone_, you will not only lose your chance to becoming a ninja, you will at best be fined several thousand ryu, at worse be executed for treason."

The genin gaped in shocked. Even Haruhi was surprised. "Kakashi-sensei, why can't we tell anyone? From what you said there is nothing to worry about!" The green-eyed girl, who was curious, asked.

"Given what happened 12 years ago… what do you think will happen if Haruhi being here gets out?" Kakashi asked to no one in particular.

Sakura was going to defend the village when she was cut off.

With glazed look Naruto answered**,** "They wouldn't care if she was nice or not. They would **most likely **attack her."

Sakura was about to argue the point when some words from her chosen one interrupted. "After the attack, I can't see Konoha accepting her anytime soon.** They'd probably want her head.**"

Sakura did not dare say anything after that. It was one thing with Naruto; it's another coming from Sasuke.

Kakashi was saddened by the **answers the **two genin** had given**; both understood the harsh reality of things. Haruhi** herself** noticed the look in Naruto's eyes. She didn't like it. It spoke of years of hardship and pain that no one at his age should be able to achieve, especially her son.

"I'm glad you understand why." He lied. "So are we in agreement?" The genin nodded. "Good, now lets continue the introductions. Then me, Haruhi, and Naruto are going to see the Hokage."

"Why do I need to go with you to see the old man?" The blond asked trying to get away from Haruhi as fast as possible.

Haruhi was once again surprised by her son's words. _'Why doesn't he want to go see his father?'_

Thinking fast, "The Hokage has asked me to bring you to him when we are done here, and before you ask, no he did not tell me why." Naruto closed his partially opened mouth. Kakashi then turned to Haruhi. "Haruhi-chan, I am going to ask you to keep things to yourself until we get to the hokage's office."

"What?"

Her son was right there. She wanted to tell him who she was. It was clear he had no idea who she was. Now that she thought about it, why isn't she telling him? It didn't take long for her to figure it out.

She was scared. What would he do if he learned his mom was a Kyuubi? From what she gathered, Kyuubis aren't welcomed in Konoha. Given what happened, she couldn't blame them, but did he have the same view? Having her brother in him probably hasn't help things.

Kakashi continued on, "Due to you being, well, you. The hokage has been keeping you a secret from everyone." Kakashi glanced at Naruto. No one else caught it, but Haruhi. She knew what that meant. Naruto hasn't been told anything. This angered her. Naruto didn't know who her mother was. She was going to change that, and ohis she going to give a nasty tongue lashing to his father.

"Fine, but I reserve the right to share everything when I get the chance." Kakashi nodded agreeing to the terms.

"Fair enough. Now, Naruto, could you repeat yourself for Haruhi. I'm sure she would love to here what you said earlier."

Naruto groaned. He _really_ didn't want Haruhi to get more information on him, but there wasn't much he could do. "Ok Kakashi-sensei," With a lot of the enthusiasm missing, "My name is Uzumaki Naruto. I like ramen and Iruka-sensei. I don't like the time it takes to make ramen. My dream… is to surpass the hokage and have the village acknowledge my existence."

Hearing this Haruhi smiled. Just like his father, complete faith in his dream. There was no doubt in his voice. She chose to ignore the ramen part though. She also didn't understand the existence thing either.

Naruto saw the smile. He, in turn, gave one of his fake smiles. Years of making them had made them perfect. No one could tell the difference and Haruhi bought it hook line and sinker. Kakashi motioned for the brooder to go next.

"Uchiha Sasuke**,** there are lot's of things I dislike and I really don't like anything. I can't call it a dream, but I have an ambition. The resurrection of my clan and to kill a certain man."

Haruhi wasn't sure exactly what to make of the Uchiha. On one hand, he was going to be a shinobi, wanting to kill certain people came with the job. But… that should only come after several years on the job. The resurrection of the clan also threw her off. What happened to the Uchiha clan? He also kept glancing at Haruhi. She wasn't happy with that. Next was pink.

"My name is Haruno Sakura. I Like…" Looking a Sasuke, she squealed. "Well the person I like is…" Looking a Sasuke, she squealed. "And my dream for the future is…" Looking a Sasuke, she squealed again. "What I dislike is Naruto. My hobby is…" Taking one last look at Sasuke, thankfully not squealing this time.

'…_You can't be serious. Does she even want to be a Konohichi and what's with hating __my__ son? This girl better watch herself.' _Haruhi looked at Kakashi to see his reaction to this. It was clear he wasn't impressed with the girl either._ 'This is my son's genin team? A brooding boy bent on vengeance and a Fan-Girl? Luckily he has Kashi-kun, but I am going have a talk to Minato about this.'_

Lying through his teeth, he made with the reply, "You are all very… interesting."

It was clear Kakashi wasn't exactly thrilled about his team, but what could you do? The counsel ordered him to train Sasuke. He was glad though. He had his sensei's son on his team, even if it was through sheer dumb luck.

"Tomorrow, meet me at Training Area 7 at 7:00 am; and don't eat breakfast. You'll throw up if you do." The genin gulped at that.

"Come on Naruto, let's go see Hokage-sama. Haruhi, can you turn into your human form again?"

"First, when I turn into a human I'm naked," They all blushed. "Second, no, I don't have enough chakra. It will take me at least 2 days before I can."

Sasuke smirked. "You can't even do a simple transformation jutsu. What kind of demon are you?"

Naruto, Kakashi, even Sakura paled. All were in agreement. Insulting a 9-Tailed Fox was probably one of the stupidest things you ever could do in your life.

Haruhi laughed. _'That's not good.'_ The three thought.

"You got balls brat. The last person to ever question my skills was eaten alive. Tasted like chicken, but you're stupid so I'll let it slide."

Sasuke glared at her. Sakura wanted to defend Sasuke, but even she didn't want to risk Haruhi's wraith for Sasuke. Naruto was laughing to himself. '_Maybe she isn't that bad_', he thought. Kakashi thanked Haruhi for not doing anything. They all tuned in for what she had to say next.

"You see brat, the jutsu I used was not an academy level jutsu. It was a kinjutsu. Normal humans can't perform this jutsu because you need a kage levels worth of chakra. It isn't just a simple transformation that wears off after a while. This is a permanent transformation. Organs, skin, eyes, even your DNA change."

"Yes, I can change again, but even I need time to recuperate from the shock to the systems. Forcing your insides to re-arrange themselves isn't exactly a pleasant feeling. I wouldn't be surprised if you dropped to your knees and begged for death to end the pain that's being inflicted. Satisfied, you little shit?"

Sasuke and Sakura said nothing. Naruto was impressed; kage level chakra and that kind of endurance. He quickly decided to learn that jutsu and master it. If he could he would definitely be ready for the Hokage's chair and hat.

Kakashi made a mental note to keep Sasuke away from Haruhi.

After making sure Haruhi's lesson was over, Kakashi performed the best henge he could 3 times upon Haruhi, turning her into a dog with a blue cape and a leaf hiathi-ati. _'He turned me into one of his __dogs__….' _She didn't verbalize her complaint though.

"Let's go." Kakashi motioned.

Naruto jumped to his feet. "Hold on a sec, Kakashi-sensei!" Looking at Sakura with a smile. "Sakura-chan, do you want to go out some time and…"

"No," Not even letting him finish.

"But Sakura-chan," The smile gone with the wind.

"Why would I ever go out with dead last? You're annoying Naruto. Sasuke, if you want to go out sometime?" Sakura was starry eyed.

Sasuke just got up and walked away. Sakura chased after him, Naruto watching as they left. Kakashi held no emotion on his face, but inside he was feeling Naruto's pain.

Haruhi was shell-shocked. _'That girl refused, insulted, and blew off __my__ son. He is the son of the hokage and a Kyuubi. Girls should be lined up for him just to hold his hand, let alone a date. That girl just made my list.'_

It didn't take them long to get there, for soon enough, they stood outside the hokage's office.

Haruhi wasn't happythough. The people they passed on the street all gave Naruto looks of anger or disgust. She hadn't said anything because she didn't understand why they were giving him the looks, but she was quickly reaching her limit. The receptionist was no different and Haruhi was half tempted to kill her.

What amazed her was Naruto took it all in stride with a smile on his face. He was polite and kind to everyone. She just didn't get what he could have done to deserve this kind of treatment. Naruto had noticed the looks, she could tell. Subtle facial changes were the give away, but no one said or did anything. It was as if this was normal.

What was unknown to her at the moment however was that he was planning on pranking a good number of people for the stares. Maybe he should do something that involved pouring honey on the guy and tossing a beehive on his head…

Without so much as a glance to the receptionist, Kakashi opened the doors and ushered them in. What greeted the 3 was Sondaime, Homura, and Koharu looking right back.

"What is the meaning of this? Get out, we are discussing important matters." Homura ordered.

Kakashi bowed apologetically, it wasn't good to piss off the people in power, especially ones with sticks up their butts. "Gomen, I have important information for the Hokage that supercedes everything."

"Whatever it is? It can wait. We are in the middle of an important matter." Koharu said getting agitated. Neither Koharu nor Homura even glanced at Naruto or Haruhi.

"I'll hear it." Sarutobi stated. That caught Haruhi by surprise. Minato was Hokage last time she checked which was admittedly was 12 years ago…

"Hokage-sama we…"

"You have spent an hour of my time arguing about a genin team that I already approved of. We are done. Now, Kakashi, what is it?" Sarutobi asked. He wasn't happy, but he wasn't going to take it out on an innocent man.

Kakashi, upon hearing that, immediately knew what was going on, they didn't want Naruto on Sasuke's team.

Making a quick decision, he walked up to the Hokage and whispered into his ear. Those 2 old bastards could learn about this later.

The Hokage processed what he just learned and fought very hard not to go into shock. His eye's locked onto Haruhi. Without moving his gaze anywhere else, "Homura, Koharu out… now."

"But Ho…"

"I said, out." Sarutobi's tone left no room for argument and they quickly left. Only after they were gone and everything was secure did he ask, "Are you really Uzumaki Haruhi?"

Doubt was clearly in his voice. Naruto eyes shot open to sizes no one has ever seen before. He turned and stared at the henged fox.

Haruhi just smiled. "Do you have any soldier pills and some spare clothing? I would like to be in human form as soon as possible. Also where is Minato-kun? I have some questions for him."

"Kakashi, go to the armory and get what she has asked for. Haruhi, about Minato…we will talk about that soon." Sarutobi wanted some time to figure out how to tell her.

Kakashi quickly followed orders and was back within 5 minutes with what was asked.

Naruto was in a daze. He couldn't grasp the idea of her having the Uzumaki name, remaining silent the whole time. Sarutobi saw this and became worried about what he will do. Haruhi also saw this. She didn't blame him for such a reaction. Taking the 3 pills and the ANBU uniform, she left for the nearest bathroom.

Naruto was still in his own world when she left. If Sakura had come in screaming that she loved Naruto while holding Sasuke in a headlock and punching him in the face every few seconds, Naruto would not even flinch and ignore them completely.

It took about 3 full minutes before Naruto's system failed brain could restart. "Hey old man, why did you call her Uzumaki? She's a Kyuubi. Why would we have the same name?"

Before Sarutobi could answer, Haruhi walked right in. She looked just as she did 12 years ago. Her multi-colored hair still reached down to her lower back, her eyes were a dark red, and the whisker marks were still there.

The uniform was a bit big, but Kakashi did the best he could with 12-year-old measurements he used from his memory. While in the bathroom she had decided to go with the direct approach.

"What else would you call your mother?"

Needless to say, that was not the answer Naruto was expecting to hear. Haruhi didn't quite catch that and was smiling from ear to ear. She was hoping it would lessen the shock.

'_Oh shit.' _Was the thought of both the older men in the room.

Naruto was completely speechless. His brain was still functioning, but it was still a lot to take in. _'Did she say 'mother'?'_ Naruto was staring wide eyed at the fox in human form.

It was time for Haruhi to get some answers though.

"Now, where is your father? I have questions for him." No answer. Naruto just stared. She was beginning to wonder if she broke him. "Hello, are you okay?" She waited patiently for Naruto. She had figured that Minato would at least have showed pictures of her in human form. She was about to ask if he was okay again, but Naruto effectively put a stop to that.

"YOU'RE A LIAR! I'M NOT A DEMON, I'M NOT!!!" That wasn't what Haruhi was expecting.

Naruto's hands were fist with white knuckles. He was trembling all over. His eyes however, were steady. They held defiance in them, as if he could force the facts to change.

In a much quieter voice, "I'm not what people call me. I'm not a monster. I'm not a demon. If what you said was true, then all the looks, all the names, and even the beatings, everything… I deserved it all.

"Old man, tell her that she made a mistake, that I'm not her son. She can't be my mother."

Sarutobi was truly saddened from what he had just heard. "Naruto, you never deserved what the village has done to you. No, you are not what they call you, but she is your mother. You have…"

Naruto was already running out the door. He couldn't take it anymore. Sarutobi watched him go.

Haruhi was staring at the now open door. The words he had said hurt. Him yelling at her and calling her a liar about being his mother brought tears to her eyes, but some of the other words were getting very different reactions. _'Looks… names… _BEATINGS_!'_

Turning to the old men. "Explain, NOW." Her voice sent chills down their backs. The 2 men were looking at a pissed off kyuubi mother. Death would have been apleasant alternative.

Sarutobi took a deep breath. _'This is one shitty day'_

"Please close the door and sit down. Naruto needs some time alone, and this is a long story." Haruhi did as she was instructed, Sarutobi sitting himself onto his chair. He took out his pipe and lit it. He was too old for this shit. Kakashi was standing next to Sarutobi, waiting for the story to start.

After collecting his thoughts, he started. "First, you should know that Minato is dead." That shot pain all through Haruhi. "He died performing a self-sacrificing kinjutsu that sealed your brother into Naruto." He paused so she could absorb that harsh bit of information.

Haruhi realized something, the jutsu that she performed, the one that had sucked up all of her chakra. That had to be it. When she used up all her chakra, there was nothing to hold her together. Kyuubis are pure chakra given flesh. There must have been some chakra left, because she would be dead otherwise. Then it hit her, Minato was dead before she even got there. "Who has been taking care of Naruto?"

Sarutobi sighed, "No one."

"What? Where was Jiraiya… he's the godfather! Or Kashi-kun could have done it, even Anko-chan, or Rin?"

"Anko doesn't know about Naruto. We told people that Minato's wife and newborn child died in the attack. The counsel sent Kakashi on mission after mission, most of which took a full month to complete. Rin died during the attack. Jiraiya…" Sarutobi was afraid of this one. "Jiraiya had been running a spy network, and it takes him away from Konoha years at a time."

At hearing about Jiraiya, she was pissed. The others had reasonable excuses. Jiraiya could have gotten someone else to run the network. He could have even taken Naruto with him. "A spy network. He neglected my son for a spy network." On the outside she looked calm. On the inside she was already plotting the man's slow and painful death.

Sarutobi was surprised she took that rather well. Kakashi, feeling the need to speak up in his defense, stated, "Haruhi-chan, I have asked several of my friends in ANBU to watch him, but even I don't trust them all. It was only until recently that I was able to watch him."

He didn't want to share this next bit of information in front of the hokage, but Haruhi needed this information right now. " I had also rigged the last few genin teams to fail, so I could get a chance to be Naruto's jonin instructor." Haruhi was thankful to Kakashi at this. Sarutobi on the other hand, made a note to talk to Kakashi about this.

Sarutobi continued Naruto's story. "When the village found out about what Minato did, the people demanded Naruto's death. If they had known he was Minato's son, things might have been different. Not even the counsel knows. Some had their suspicions, but most refuse to see it, even if he looks just like him. If it weren't for some of the major clans and a counsel member, he would have been killed."

Haruhi was shocked that the village would demand the death of a child. Becoming the vessel, if anything, was already punishing him. "Who were the people that protected my son?"

'She needs to know the whole truth on this one, before she goes and says she owes anyone.'

"The Inuzuka were the only clan that had good intentions. They truly did not want a child to die for something he had no control over. They understood that he wasn't the demon, even if it was only about half of them that felt that way. They, however, still did nothing to help him while he was growing up. The Hyuuga and Nara defended him because they were afraid that if the container should die, your brother would be free to finish what he started.

"The Uchiha and Danzo are the last two. Both of which wanted Naruto as a weapon. Danzo wanted to train him into an emotionless killing machine for the village. The Uchiha wanted him for their clan. Most likely as leverage over the other clans and when Naruto was old enough, they were most likely going to use him for breeding stronger Uchiha." Haruhi was getting more upset the more she heard. Her son had a hard life before he was a month old.

Sarutobi continued, "He lived in the orphanage for 3 years, but than he ran away from there. He refuses to tell me what happened and after a while I dropped it. I paid for him to stay in an apartment. I made a law that no one is allowed to talk about Naruto's tenant in the hopes that he may have a normal life.

"However things didn't go that way. They saw him as your brother and not his container. The ANBU couldn't always be there and yes sometime there hatred for him ended with him in the hospital. The hatred from the parents was passed to their children. He has tried to make friends, but all the parents tell their children to stay away from him. When he decided to become a shinobi, I filled the paper work."

"He found out about your brother last night. A traitor, named Mizuki tricked him to steal a scroll, and in the process told Naruto the truth. If it hadn't been for one of the teachers, I don't know what would have happened. The rest of it should be obvious. Kakashi is now his current Jonin instructor."

"Haruhi, may I ask what you are going to tell him."

Haruhi stood from her seat, "I'm going to tell him everything. He has the right to know."

"I'd rather you didn't. Minato's enemies would go after him should the truth come out and I don't think he is ready for such information." Sarutobi stated.

"Sarutobi, I understand." Sarutobi was thinking that this was too easy and he was right. "I am still going to tell him. He was ready the day he was born. The fact that he knows the truth does not mean my husband's enemies will as well."

"Lastly under you he has lived alone and hated by everyone. I'm his mother and from here on out I'll decide what happens to him. You tried to protect him. You failed." Sarutobi was saddened at the words and he lowered his head. She was right. He would let her handle it from here on out.

"You will find him on his father's head. He is a good kid. Please take care of him." The hokage never lifted his head.

Haruhi gave a weak smile. "He is my son. I will do whatever it takes for him." With that she left. She knew what Sarutobi meant about where Naruto is and made her way to the hokage monument. The Hokage sighed there was going to be a lot more paperwork.

Haruhi found Naruto right where the Sondaime said. He was sitting and staring out over the village. His arms wrapped around his legs, his knees were up at his chest. It was obvious he had been crying. Haruhi hung back in the woods and watched.

She didn't know how to approach him. What she learned was beyond cruel. It explained his reaction. She had expected him to be shocked, speechlessness, and being in denial. What she got instead was outright disgust and anger at the idea of being related to her.

"I know your there." Naruto did nothing to show he knew.

This took Haruhi aback. _'He knew'_ Not many people could detect her when she was trying to hide. She slowly walked up. Naruto made no movement to acknowledge her. She sat down next to him and mimicked him bring up her knees and wrapping her arms around them. Her red eyes stole glances every few seconds.

It was starting to get dark and the wind was lightly blowing. They sat like that for a few minutes. Finally, the awkward silence was starting to get to them. Haruhi open her mouth to say something, only to close it as if thinking it was a bad idea. She repeated this 5 more times, until Naruto finally couldn't take it.

"SAY SOMETHING DAMMIT!!" Naruto snapped. This caught Haruhi off guard. The next few words were blurted out not much louder than a whisper.

"I'm sorry," Naruto barely heard what she said.

"What?" Naruto turned his head to see her. What he saw was a woman almost in tears. The fact she was a Kyuubi didn't even cross his mind.

"I'm sorry. It's my fault you were alone. I had used the last of my chakra to protect your father. What I didn't know was that he had already performed a kinjutsu that would take his life. I could and should have been there for you from the start. If I had just simply stayed out of the fight, you wouldn't have been alone."

"Do you know what it is like to hear how your son was treated like dirt for 12 years and had no one to help him? I could have been there and the worse part is watching him run from you, yelling that him being my son has to be a lie."

Those tears she was fighting finally managed to escape her eyes. Naruto just watched her. "I heard from Sarutobi how you grew up. It's taking everything I have not to destroy this village."

Though he was horrified at her saying she would destroy Konoha for him, he stayed quiet for her to finish. This was a whole knew situation for him and he would listen to everything she had to say first.

"Think of what it's like to hear your child was an orphan because no one wanted to help him. That people demanded his death before he was a month old." That was new information. Naruto couldn't believe they had demanded for his death. Haruhi continued, "That ANBU had to protect him from attacks. That he has no friends and no knowledge of who he really is. The feeling that you get from this is worse than death. Your father and I agreed to seal my brother in you. It broke our hearts. To top it off, we had sacrificed ourselves thinking the other would be there for you. In reality we left you to fend for yourself in a village that hated you for 12 years. I can't tell you how sorry I am, but knowing that we had caused this. It…It…" Haruhi lost it. She buried her face in her hands and wept. Naruto wasn't sure what to do, but being the Nice Guy he decided to do something. With everything he heard, how couldn't he?

Naruto reached over and rubbed Haruhi's back. He was hoping it would calm her down. She was really upset about this. Even more than himself, he realized. After a few minutes Haruhi had stopped crying. She looked at Naruto and smiled. It was the first sign of affection she had gotten from him and it was reassuring that everything would be all right.

Naruto noticed that she was shivering. Weather it was from the cold or trying to make a lake with her snot, he didn't know. He still took his jacket and draped it over her shoulders. Naruto assumed he made the right choice when she pulled the jacket tighter around herself. It was night and the stars were out. The village's lights were on.

Naruto looked back out at the village. Everything that she said was running through his brain. He had never met this woman before and here she was crying for him. Threatening to destroy an entire village for him. Finding out that the village wanted him dead was upsetting, but not surprising either. That was when something she said caught his attention. "Haruhi, ummm…you said your brother attacked the village right?"

"Yes." Haruhi wasn't sure what he was getting at.

"And if I'm your son than wouldn't that make him my…"

Haruhi caught on, "Unfortunately, yes, he is your uncle."

Naruto thought it over for a little bit and decided to ask. "Haruhi, wouldn't that mean I have had family with me this whole time?" Haruhi froze. "That would mean you didn't leave me alone. So you don't have to be so upset." Haruhi fallowed his train of thought.

She couldn't take it and started to laugh. She tried to hold it in, but it still came out. Soon she was rolling on the ground laughing. It was sad that this was how he tried to make her feel better. The irony though was that the same bastard that had caused him to be alone was the same bastard that has always been with him. Naruto just watch, once again in a situation he wasn't entirely sure of.

Haruhi started to calm down. Wiping a tear from her eye "Thank you, I needed that. So, are you starting to except the fact that your mother is a Kyuubi?"

Naruto didn't answer. The people who knew him would be shocked. He was calm and was thinking through everything he was going to say. "You know, part of me wants to grab a hold of you and never let go. I always wanted a family. The closest thing I have is Iruka-sensei, Ayame-neechan, the old man hokage, and Teuchi-jisan. The fact anyone wants me to be in their family makes me the happiest I've ever been."

Haruhi was sad at his last words. No child should ever have to say such words. She also made a mental note to find out whom the other 3 people are. The hokage didn't mention them.

"The other part is scared. You are a kyuubi. If you are my mother, that makes me a kyuubi. That would also mean the people who call me names are right. I am a demon. I have been yelled at, chased, they have thrown rocks at me, beaten me, and all of it because they thought I was what was inside of me. If you really are my mother then wouldn't that make them right?" Naruto looked over to her for some kind of confirmation on what he was thinking.

Haruhi just sighed. "Naruto let me tell you something. In my entire life, I have only known of one kyuubi no kitsune clan. How many people are in a clan here?"

Naruto had to think about it. "I don't know. I never really thought of it. I guess 60 maybe 70 people."

"A clan can range from 50 to 500 people depending on several different things. The Konoha clans average at about 150 people. The Kyuubi no kitsune clan has never had more than 12 members."

Naruto was surprised. That was a small clan but it made senseconsidering they are massive foxes. _'Hay wait a minute, Why is Haruhi so small.'_ "Haruhi why are you so small and the kyuubi that attack Konoha so big and I thought you said it would take 2 days for you to turn into a human?"

"I'll answer that in a sec, let me finish this first." Naruto nodded. "You see our clan is small because we don't always give birth to a kyuubi." Naruto jaw dropped. This caused Haruhi to laugh. "When we are at the age to take a mate, we never choose another kyuubi because we are all family and that is gross and wrong on so many levels."

"What we do is we change into a human and find a suitable mate. Usually a strong ninja like your father. We could mate with other animals, but they rarely ever produce another kyuubi with any talent. After we get pregnant we have a choice. We can either stay in that form or we can choose to change back into a kyuubi. If we choose the first option the child will never be a kyuubi."

"He or she will have kyuubi blood, part of our power, and sometimes traits, but will not be an actual kyuubi. We only do this if we have fallen in love with the mate and wish to be with them till they die. We live for hundreds of years, nothing lives as long as we do."

"This is what I did with you. I was a human with your father, I was human while I was pregnant and I was human when I gave birth. That means you are human with my abilities and my whisker marks from the looks of it. Everything else you got from your father." Haruhi smiled at Naruto. Naruto smiled back. From what he could gather from what she was saying, he wasn't a demon or a monster.

"To produce a kyuubi we have to change back into a kyuubi during pregnancy. There are several variables that help in the process. How long you are a kyuubi while pregnant is one such variable, but even with the best of conditions it is only about 60% possible to get a Kyuubi child. Do you follow so far?" Naruto nodded.

"Good, now as for your question about my size. Do you really believe a creature that can change its DNA couldn't change its size or appearance? We usually stay about as small as you first saw me. It is hard to hide when you're bigger than most buildings. We kyuubi stay away from fighting as much as we can. If it's not our fight why get involved?"

"When we do though, even the mountains shake at our approach. That is why people fear us so much. The size thing is a battle tactic. It gives us a physical advantage over everything that is smaller. For an example, ants can lift 10 times their own body weight. That means they are stronger than humans by several times, but humans are massive compared to an ant. You can easily crush them with one finger. I believe the Akimichi clan uses such a tactic as a blood limit for their clan."

Naruto barely understood, but he followed enough to get the main idea. He was excited, "Could you possibly teach me how to do all that?"

Haruhi sighed, "Sorry but no. Like I said to the teme. It's a kinjutsu that could kill a human trying to perform it. I took three soldier pills earlier to perform it once and I'm back to where I started before I changed. I'll think about teaching you it if you get stronger, but I doubt that it will happen."

Naruto just smiled, "I'm Uzumaki Naruto, I'll be able to do anything because I'll surpass every Hokage ever!!"

Haruhi was glad and grateful that the life he lived hadn't consumed him with hatred. "So Naru-chan, what about us? I'm your mother and I'm not leaving anytime soon. Do you need more proof?"

Naruto shaking his head, "No, I believe you. Something tells me you're telling the truth. Besides, I always wanted a mother."

Naruto was taken by complete surprise when Haruhi tackled him. "Thank you Thank you Thank you!! After you ran out like that, I thought you would never accept me as your mother. This makes me so happy. I'm going to spoil you rotten!"

Naruto laughed and hugged her back. He had questions though. "Ummm Haruhi-chan, may I ask a few questions?"

"Of course, what do you want to know?" Haruhi was holding on as if he would change his mind if she let go.

"Who was my father?" That one line stopped her. She got off of him and sat down.

"That's right no one ever told you." Naruto sat up and watched his new mother, waiting for an answer. No one ever answered his questions and now he was so close. If she said she couldn't answer, he would be heart broken. "What I'm about to tell you can't leave this place. Your father had lots of powerful enemies and if they found out his son and wife were alive… They would hunt us down. Do you understand?"

Naruto gulped. He now understood why no one told him. The information was dangerous. He still wanted to know though. This was one of the questions he had always asked from as far back as he could remember. He nodded for her to continue. Haruhi took a deep breath. This was going to be big.

"Your father was a powerful man. Loved by the village and feared by his enemies. He was handsome and kind. I fell in love with him the first night we met. I still don't know how he did it. If you want to see him, just look in the mirror. His hair, his eyes, his smile you got it all from him. The whisker makes are mine though. He was also brave. Willing to sacrifice him self for the village. He did seal my brother in you."

Naruto was confused. "Wait I thought the yondaime sealed the fur ball in me."

Haruhi smiled at the fur ball comment. "He did."

"You just said my father…" Naruto trailed off as realization dawned on him. _'The forth is my father, no way.' _"Haruhi-chan does that mean…"

"Yes Naruto, the forth hokage is your father." Naruto's brain shut down. Haruhi kept watching him. _'I'm not sure, but I think I broke him.' _Haruhi poked Naruto to get a reaction. There was none. "Naruto?" She poked a little harder knocking him over. He was gone. "Naruto are you okay?"

It took an hour before he was up again. Haruhi had no idea where he lived so she couldn't take him home, and she wasn't going back into the village without him. She might kill someone. Noticing him stir she walked over to him. "You okay Naru-kun?"

"Yah, what happened?" Naruto was slowly getting to his feet.

"You found out who your father is and past out." She answered while helping him up.

"That's right the Forth is my father. Namikaze Minato. Hey, something from Iruka's classes stuck."

"His name is Uzumaki. I'll tell you about that later though. In the meantime, lets get you home. You have to be up by seven." Haruhi waited for him to get his bearings.

"I have one question. If the yondaime is my father**,** then why was I chosen for the seal?"

Naruto started walking home.

"Naruto, you are not the first person to house a demon in you. You most likely won't be the last. No matter what demon a person has, one thing stays the same. The lives you all live are always hard. I didn't know how hard. We could not and would not ask another family to give up one of their own."

"Minato-kun had asked that you be treated better than you had. I heard him asking that the village to treat you as a hero for your sacrifice on my way to the battle. It was his last wish. I believed that if people found out about me then it would only make it harder on you, should they not do what he asked. That is when I made the decision to sacrifice myself to save him. I thought he could protect you from the village better than I could. As you can see, it didn't go as planned for either of us."

They had entered the village now and were making there way to his apartment. She was noticing the looks they were both getting. He was getting the same glares she saw at the tower. From the men she was getting looks of lust. She was incredibly good looking. The women were giving her looks of, 'why is she so close to it'. All in all she was getting pissed.

A dark haired pale-eyed girl was walking home from her "stalking" of Naruto-kun. She had looked for him everywhere. The ramen stand, his apartment, and his other usual spots he hung out. Most were in the woods outside of town. She remembered earlier that day, when Naruto walked in with a hiathi-ati.

She didn't know how he pulled it off, but she was happy. Then the teams came out. She wasn't so happy about that. Naruto-kun, her Naruto-kun, was placed on that for headed girls team. Why that girl of all people. She treated him so badly, and she gets put on his team.

She sighed. He was happy about it though.

She had wished that he would have been that happy with her, but she wasn't on his team. She got the quiet Aburame, and the over confident Inuzuka. At least she got Akumaru. He's cute. She was making one last pass near Naruto's apartment before she called it quits. Maybe she would get the courage to tell him how she felt… and maybe pigs would grow wings and start to fly. No matter how hard she tried, she just couldn't do it. She was brooding about her problem when she hit some one and fell down. "Owww… I'm s-sorry."

"Hinata is that you? What are you doing out here? It's late. Shouldn't you be at home?" Hinata froze and looked up.

In front of her was a tall beautiful woman with white hair and red eyes. _'Is she wearing Naruto's jacket?' _To her left Naruto was kneeling next to her. He was checking her over to make sure she was okay. "N-N-N-N-Naruto-k-kun?" Haruhi noticed the suffix, but merely watched the 2. Hinata turn red and was on her feet in seconds. "N-Naruto-kun I was looking for you." She blurted out. "I m-mean who is y-your f-friend N-Naruto-kun?" _'And why is she wearing your jacket?'_

Naruto looked at her debating if he should ask. Thinking against it. "This is Haruhi-chan. She is my mother." Naruto said this with the biggest smile.

Haruhi was so happy at how he said that with no doubt and so much pride. "How do you do miss… Hyuuga Hinata?" Haruhi bowed.

Hinata surprised and that was putting it lightly. "Your mother? N-Naruto-kun I-I thought you were an o-o-orphan and h-how d-does she know my n-name?"

Haruhi took this one. "I've been in a coma for 12 years.I woke up not to long ago. As for your name, my son called you Hinata and those eyes put you in the Hyuuga clan. I'm not wrong am I?"

"No, your n-not wrong Uzumaki-san. It is a pleasure to meet you." Hinata bowed. Hinata finally realized the time. Her father was going to get worried soon. "I'm s-sorry U-Uzumaki-san, but I must g-get home. G-Good-bye N-N-Naruto-kun." Hinata ran past the 2 and made a break for home.

The 2 Uzumakis watched as she went down the street. "Why didn't you ask her out?"

"What? Why?" Naruto almost yelled.

"She clearly likes you. She's cute, and far nicer than your teammate." Haruhi stated as if it were obvious, which it was if you weren't Naruto.

"Hinata doesn't like me. Every time she gets close to me, she turns all red and most of the time she faints. And don't talk about Sakura-chan that way! She is smart and pretty and funny and did I mention pretty." Naruto turned and continued walking to his apartment.

"Got it bad for the Sakura chick huh? You know, a girl only turns red around the boy she likes. That would explain why Sakura turns red around Sasuke." That was a low blow and Naruto felt it. "That is why Hinata turned red when she was near you. She faints because she really likes you. My son a heart-throb and he doesn't even know which girls to go after." Haruhi sighed and followed.

"You don't know what you're talking about." Naruto accused.

"Honey, I'm a girl. I know exactly what I'm talking about. How many times have you asked Sakura out?"

"I've lost count." Naruto scratched the back of his head.

Haruhi covered her face with her hand. "For Kami sake, my son is a moron. I'm going to assume she has said no every time. Otherwise you 2 would be dating or you would have given up by now. First, she turned you down. Next, she said she hated you. Lastly, she is chasing after that teme. So why don't you go ask another girl out?"

Haruhi couldn't believe she was having this talk. The girl clearly had no interest in her son. Haruhi also didn't like the girl and made it her mission to prevent that girl from ever dating Naruto.

Naruto grumbled under his breath. He was glad he was finally home and could put this argument to rest. As they walked to his apartment room, Haruhi saw the graffiti. 'Just die demon' and 'leave the village' were some of the nicer ones. Haruhi also saw how empty it was.

As Naruto got his key out he stopped. His door was open. Drawing a Kunai, he slowly moved into his room. Haruhi followed at a distance. As they made it to the living room Naruto calmed and lowered his weapon. "It's okay. Some people just broke in again."

"Again? How often does this happen?" She asked

Naruto thought about it, "2 or 3 time a month."

"What?" Haruhi was shocked 2 or 3 times a month. '_Oh Minato, What have we done to our son__?__'_

"I'll sleep in the futon tonight. The bed is over there. Well I'll see you tomorrow." Naruto yawned and got the spare futon from the closet. He had gotten it for a sleep over. If Naruto were to ever get any friends. He laid it out. "Goodnight Haruhi-chan."

He fell asleep in his clothes, as soon as he hit the pillow. He was worn out from the day. It was a lot of information to take in.

Haruhi just watched him. She couldn't believe this was normal for him. She would have to talk to Sarutobi about this. No one should live like this. Haruhi looked around. There was nothing, just a bed and a dresser. No wonder he wasn't worried about robbers. There was nothing to steal or damage. They probably broke in, took one look around, and left thinking someone beat them to it. His kitchen was filthy. She almost started crying again. She swore she would fix this. "Goodnight my son. I promise to make this up to you." With that Haruhi tried to get some sleep.

Hiashi was pacing back and forth in front of the door. Hinata was late for her curfew. She was the heiress to the Hyuuga clan. She was a prime target for any village. He became a little paranoid after Kumo kidnapped her.

He was just about to order Neji to go find her when Hinata came flying through the front door, nearly running into him. She was out of breath, sweating. The run to her house wasn't incredibly far, but Hinata had ran at full speed to make curfew. She was still late. "Hinata, explain why are you late." Hiashi ordered.

"Y-yes f-father, I was on my way h-home, w-when I ran into N-Naruto-kun and his m-mother. We t-talked and I lost track of t-time." Hinata stuttered out.

'_Naruto again, I really wish she would have a crush on anyone else.'_ Hiashi knew of the demon vessel. Who didn't at this point? He was the demon vessel. He also has nearly pranked everyone in the village, and the stunt with the Hokage monument was already a legend.

Hiashi had to admit that he was impressed with that one. Painting something that big in a village of some of the best ninja on the continent was no easy feet to accomplish. He was one of the few people who understood that he was the vessel and not the demon. He also knew about Hinata's crush on the blue-eyed blond. Once again, who didn't? _'Whenever she is late, it always involves Naruto and his mo…Mother?'_

"Hinata, Naruto is an orphan. What do you mean by his mother?"

Hinata hadn't moved from her spot. She was fiddling with her index fingers. "Well, h-his mother was in a c-coma and she recently w-woke up. I t-talked with her. She s-seems n-nice."

Hiashi was on the village counsel and would have remembered if Naruto had his mother in a coma. Either Sarutobi hid this information from the counsel, or she was from out of the village. If she was from somewhere else, she was a security risk. "Hinata describe her for me."

Hinata was starting to get scared that she was getting Naruto in trouble. "S-She's has long w-white hair and red eyes. She is very b-beautiful. She also has the birth marks N-Naruto-kun has on his cheeks."

She didn't see Haruhi's back, so she didn't notice her hair changed colors.

Hiashi would talk to Hokage tomorrow about this. It was late and if she were who she says she was, she wouldn't be leaving anytime soon. If she wasn't, he trusted the Hokage to deal with it. He knew that the Hokage had ANBU watching the boy almost 24/7. He most likely already knew. If he hasn't done anything yet, he wouldn't do anything after Hiashi talked to him. "Hinata go get some dinner, then go to bed."

"Yes father." Hinata hurried off to the kitchen to get some food. Hiashi stayed and thought about the new situation. He knew the counsel would want to hear about this. There was a counsel meeting tomorrow about one of the genin teams. Homura and Koharu were having a fit about the Uchiha being on Naruto's team. They most likely would have a vote on it.

Personally he didn't care one way or another. Maybe he should bring this up, or maybe he should just talk to the Hokage. _'Decisions, decisions' _Hiashi would figure this out later right now he had other things to take care of.

The clan counsel was asking about Hinata again. He would go ask his daughter about her team. Give the Hyuuga counsel something to wine about. They had been on his back about Hinata. For once they were pleased about Hinata passing the genin test at the academy, but bitched about how her scores weren't the best in the class.

He loved his daughter with his whole being, but if he wanted her to complete her dream of changing the clan, she would have to get stronger. Hiashi had very little power over the clan counsel. If they wanted to make some one else the heir they could. Hinata was kind, like her late mother, kindness was looked down upon in the counsel's eyes.

He also knew why she never won her spars with her younger sister Hanabi. He had too much experience not to see it. Hinata didn't want to hurt her little sister. The counsel only saw the losses. Hiashi had to push Hinata even harder so she could improve, but with no luck. Hiashi even started to act cold so she would strive to get his approval. Once again the counsel didn't like the results. Talks of replacing her already started to take root. Hiashi was getting a strong hatred for all things counsel.

**This is my first fan-fiction and I hope it won't be my last. I hope you enjoyed the story so far. I do plan on finishing the story. For the most part it is all in my head. I just need to get it type and organized. **

**I would gladly accept comments. My only request is if you don't like my story or my writing style. Tell me how to fix it. Like I said I'm new. I will try and get the next chapter out as soon as possible, but I still have to work. Thank you for reading my story.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. I would like to know if anyone owned anything.**

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"Ugh…what the hell could make that foul noise?" Haruhi grumbled as she rolled over and covered her head with a pillow. It was clear she wasn't a morning person.

"My alarm clock. Could you turn it off please?" Naruto asked while trying to get to his feet. Naruto had never been a morning person either. The only reason he got up this early was because Ayame opened the Ramen shop so he could eat breakfast at 6:00 am. The fact that Ayame always opened the Ramen shop for him, to get breakfast at 6:00 in the morning, was the only reason he got up at all.

Haruhi reached out and started to search for the illusive creature. After several pats on a nearby dresser she finally found the evil device. Looking at the time, _'5 in morning, what the hell is wrong with my son… better not answer that__**.**__'_ Haruhi threw the clock into the air. Gathering a small amount chakra into a ball at the tip of her index finger, she pointed at the doomed device and fired, turning it into several smoldering pieces.

Naruto saw the whole thing and was on his feet in seconds. "What the hell did you do!?" He had never see anything like that before.

"What? I made it stop, didn't I?" Haruhi stared at her blond boy. "You told me to." Haruhi had destroyed the clock to show off a bit, but now that she thought about it she could have thought of a better way to impress her son.

Naruto was wide-awake and wide-eyed, practically drooling. He had just seen one of the coolest moves ever.

"That's not what I meant. That technique, what was that?" His destroyed clock was the last thing on his mind.

Haruhi had planned on getting more sleep after her display of skill, but with her son yelling at her. That wasn't going to happen. "The easiest way to explain it, is you gather chakra into a ball and condense it. Lastly point and shoot. There's more to it than that, but that's the basic theory."

Naruto was almost hopping now. "Teach me teach me teach me pleeeeaaaasssse."

Haruhi smiled and sat up. Rubbing the sand out of her eyes and getting a yawn out of her system, she was slowly waking up. Her body was up, but her mind was slower. She thought it over a little.

"Sorry, but your not ready yet. It takes a large amount of chakra control and no genin has enough chakra to make it work." Naruto's smile and cheer was gone. He looked like some one kicked his dog. "I'll teach you other things till your ready, if you like?"

Naruto was back and bouncing off the walls. _'I have a family with __cool jutsus!__' _"Like what?"

Haruhi put a finger to her chin as if to think over the question. "First I think I'll teach you how to unlock your fox chakra. You'll be able to enhance your body and senses much better with it than with your human chakra."

Naruto was confused. "You can use chakra like that and what do you mean 'fox chakra'?"

Taking one question at a time, "You don't know how to enhance your body and senses…. What did they teach you at the academy?"

Naruto looked away. Haruhi wasn't sure what she had just said to get that reaction, but she waited patiently for Naruto. Naruto finally looked back, putting on one of his award winning smiles, and scratching the back of his head.

"Well Iruka-sensei was the only teacher that tried to help me. The other teachers never answered any of my questions."

Haruhi bit her lower lip. That smile was clearly a fake. She recognized that smile though. It was the same smile he carried around the village. _'Are all his smiles fake? Will I ever be able to make up for what Minato and I did to you?'_ Getting up and walking over, Haruhi wrapped her arms around Naruto.

"I'm here now. I'll answer any questions you have."

Naruto wasn't use to this level of affection and had stiffened, but he relaxed after a bit. Returning the hug, they stayed like that for a short time. The feeling was warm and comforting and it was like nothing Naruto had ever felt before. Haruhi released the boy and gave him a quick kiss on his forehead and sat back on the bed. Naruto blushed; he was starting to really like this mother thing.

Naruto shook it off as he remembered the next question. "You said something about fox chakra?"

Haruhi jumped a little, "That's right, I forgot. It is a second chakra system unique to those that are related to Kyuubi's by blood. Normally we don't teach anyone how to unlock the fox chakra. Fox chakra is very potent and powerful, and it is usually too dangerous for humans to use it."

She lied.

The truth was that she was the last pure 9-tails left and she would be damned if Naruto didn't learn her families skills because of an ancient tradition she really didn't agree with.

"It is much stronger than normal chakra. The drawback is it's harder on the body. If you use it correctly, there won't be a problem though. It is harder to tap into without being taught how; this is what I'm going to teach you first."

Smiling like an idiot and dancing, Naruto was clearly excited. "I have a stronger chakra system than Sasuke-teme. I can't wait to learn how to use it and beat him senseless."

Haruhi laughed lightly at her son antics. Nothing seemed to keep her son down long enough to brood over. "Naruto-kun, mind telling me why we are up so early? We could have slept another hour."

"Ayame-neechan makes me breakfast for me at 6. You want to come? She makes really good food." He was emphasizing the point by rubbing his stomach and drooling with glazed eyes.

'_I would like to meet his neechan.'_ "Sure, I would love to go get breakfast. Now you go take a shower and get dressed. I'll get cleaned up after you."

Naruto did as he was told and was in the shower. Haruhi looked around the bedroom some more. It was as bare as the living room. There was no pictures, no posters, nothing that would show her anything about him.

Haruhi was happy though, she would get to meet the person he calls 'big sister'. Naruto had hardly anyone that treated him kindly and Haruhi wanted to meet the ones that did.

"Ichiraku's" Haruhi read the name aloud to herself. It was a humble diner. The diner was mostly a counter with about 7 stools and you could see the kitchen in the back.

"Ayame-neechan, are you in here?" Naruto called out. He walked right in without a care in the world.

"Naruto? I'm in the back making breakfast. Take a seat; I'll be out in a second." A lovely voice answered back.

"OK." Naruto sat down at the counter and Haruhi sat directly to his right. Whatever the lady was cooking, it smelled good. "Hey Ayame-neechan, don't make any for me. My sensei said not to eat breakfast or I'll throw it up. I do have someone I'd like you to meet, so just give her my share."

"Really, that isn't good for you Naruto. You really should eat something, but I guess your sensei knows what he is doing. Anyway, I'm looking forward to meeting your friend Naruto-kun." Ayame called out excitedly.

'_Maybe Naruto finally has a friend.' _It was a sad thought that he never had any friends.

Ayame and her father had always tried to be nice to the boy. He wasn't a bad kid and he only pranks those that wronged him in some way. Unfortunately, that was over three quarters of the village.

Haruhi looked over at Naruto, and saw that he was smiling from ear to ear. The blond was just so excited to introduce his mother to anyone and everyone. He finally had something that he could call a family, and now he wanted nothing more than to share it with the world. "So, this lady is your 'big sister'?" Haruhi asked.

"That's right. Ayame-neechan has always been there when I needed her. She's really nice. You'll like her." Naruto was hopping in his seat. The boy was a ball of energy.

"It's ready." A beautiful brunette in her early twenties walked out with two bowls of ramen. Ayame smiled at her little brother and turned to Haruhi.

She instantly noticed the ANBU uniform Haruhi had been wearing since yesterday. _'What does an ANBU officer want with Naruto?' _Ayame smiled regardless. It wouldn't be polite to jump to any conclusions. She was a little disappointed to see that his new friend was in her mid thirties but Naruto needed all the friends he could get regardless of age. "Naruto, who's your friend?" Ayame asked as she placed a bowl in front of Haruhi and herself.

"This is Haruhi-chan; she's my mother." Naruto explained as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

"That's ni…SHE'S YOUR WHAT?!?" Ayame yelled, head snapping towards the Genin. Her food long forgotten and the chopsticks she had been holding were now on the ground. She wasn't sure if she had heard that right. Ayame slowly turned back to Haruhi.

Haruhi just smiled and slowly waved at the bewildered woman. _'Human are so amusing.'_

"This is really good, but if you don't mind me asking, why are you making ramen this early in the morning? It isn't really breakfast food." Haruhi spoke, acting as if nothing was wrong.

Ayame couldn't form words. Her brain was in total systems failure. Seeing that the brunette wasn't going to answer any time soon, Naruto answered for her.

"This is a ramen shop. Their menu is all ramen. Isn't that awesome?"

Haruhi looked over as her jaw dropped. "You're kidding, right? You eat other foods I hope." Memories of her pregnancy and how Naruto made her eat ramen over and over again suddenly popped up in her mind.

"I eat other things. I just prefer ramen." Naruto answered with a huff and crossed his arms.

Ayame was still out of it, but bits and pieces of Haruhi and Naruto's conversation were coming through. When enough of her motor functions were working she looked over at Haruhi in the hopes of seeing anything that might confirm if Haruhi was really his mother.

It didn't take long. The three whisker marks on each cheek were a dead give away. Ayame had never seen anyone with them before, except Naruto. Other things started to pop out as well. They also shared some facial features, which only re-enforced the claim, and judging from the way they interact with each other, there personalities were similar.

"Ayame… I'm here." An older man in his late thirties to early forties wearing a typical chef's outfit walked in through the back door.

"Teuchi-jisan, you're here early. What's up?" Naruto was surprised. Teuchi rarely ever came in before eight. Naruto, however, was happy that he could introduce Haruhi to another one of his precious people.

"What, can't a man come early to greet his best customer?" Teuchi finally noticed Haruhi. Reaching over and putting a headlock on the blond, "Naruto who's your friend? She is a little old for you, but she's a looker."

Haruhi laughed at that. _'These are the people Naruto said were like family.' _As she watched them interact, her smile grew. _'At least he wasn't __totally__ alone__.'_

Naruto was just about to yell at the chef for being grouse, when Ayame tackled her father from out of nowhere. "It's his mother, dad! The woman is his mother!" She almost yelled.

Tackling her father was a little over the top, but could you blame her. This was big news.

"NANI?" Teuchi jumped up.

He looked over at Haruhi. She smiled at him. Then he looked at Naruto. The blond held the same exact smile. He too noticed how their faces were similar to each other; once again the whisker marks was the give away. No one in the entire village had them. At the very least, they had to be related somehow.

Crossing his arms over his chest, he gave Haruhi a look that could freeze water. "Where have you been all this time?" His voice was as cold as his stare.

"Jichan!" Naruto was going to protest and defend his mother, but Haruhi stopped him by putting a hand on his shoulder.

"No, Naruto. I deserve this. He won't be the last person to ask that question." Haruhi gave Naruto a pleading look for him to be quiet for a second. Naruto, rather reluctantly, just nodded in agreement after thinking it over.

Haruhi turned back to Teuchi, and gave the man a sober look.

"First I would like to thank you for watching over my son. I have only been around for a short time, but I already know how he has been treated." She was no longer able to look them in the eye and bowed her head to the chef and his daughter. Her bangs covered her eyes. "I…I was knocked into a coma shortly after I gave birth to Naruto. I don't know how I'm going to make it up to him, but I'm going to try." She then lifted her head just enough for them to see.

Haruhi's face had a sad look on it. Her eyes however held determination to fix what has been done to Naruto. She honestly didn't like lying to the few people Naruto trusted, but the truth was better left a secret.

Ayame looked like she was going to cry, but she barely held it in. She reached out and took Haruhi's hand into her hands. "You're here for him now." Turn to her father and giving him a pleading look. "Isn't that right, dad?"

Teuchi sighed. Ruffling Naruto's hair, "You bring her around more often boy. She owes you a lot of ramen." They all smiled; all but Haruhi.

"Ramen, why does it have to be ramen? Couldn't I get you something else? When I was pregnant, it was ramen every other meal." Haruhi groaned.

Teuchi's smile broadened. "Naruto, it looks like you were my best customer all the way back then too."

"Ramen is a gift from Kami!" Naruto loudly proclaimed.

The conversation dwindled to less serious topics. They discussed Naruto's likes and dislikes, his favorite past time pranks, of course, etc. At one point, Haruhi was questioned about the uniform, to which she explained that she hadn't been able to get her clothes yet, and that the Hokage let her borrow the uniform until then. Ayame then asked about Naruto's father. Naruto stayed quiet remembering what Haruhi said about his father's enemies.

Naruto had heard the stories in school Minato had killed half of the Iwa village's shinobi population in one battle. He achieved this single handedly with a single jutsu, from whence he was dubbed the Yellow Flash for. Needless to say, the family members of the dead would love to get back at the family of the man who gave them so much heartache.

It was war, and Minato was doing nothing more than fighting it to the best of his abilities, like any good soldier fighting for his home. Still, that didn't stop all the hate Iwa built upon his name.

Haruhi avoided giving a name, and explained that her husband had enemies that are still alive, she assumed. Haruhi went on to say that she wanted to make sure she could defend Naruto before his father became public knowledge. She did tell Ayame a little of his personality and the night they first met.

Ayame found it magical and awed at the story. Naruto just gagged and Haruhi smacked him playfully across his head for it.

Haruhi look at the clock. "Weren't you supposed to be some where?" Haruhi asked

Naruto looked at the clock. "I'M LATE!! I'll see you all later, byyeee!" Naruto yelled as he sprinted to the meeting area stated by Kakashi.

Haruhi watched him leave, before getting ready to leave herself. She had an appointment with the Hokage after all. "It was nice meeting you. If either of you need anything, don't be afraid to ask."

"It was nice meeting you too, and please take good care of Naruto. We care about him." Ayame replied.

Teuchi stepped forward hesitantly, "I tried adopting him once."

Haruhi stopped and stared at the man. Ayame was in shock. She hadn't heard about this. "I went through a month of red tape, only to have the counsel deny me. Those bastards told me he was too 'dangerous'. They couldn't delegate themselves out of a paper bag." Teuchi's voice was deep with hatred for the men that denied him.

Haruhi thought about her next question. About whether she should ask or not; but she had to know. "Do you know the… the truth about Naruto?"

"Yes," Was his reply, not a hint of doubt was in the man eyes.

Haruhi watched him for a while, looking for a sign that he may be lying. It only took a few seconds, but it felt like a lifetime.

"I owe you more than you could possibly know. Thank you again, but I must go talk to the Hokage. Remember if you need anything please just ask."

"I have one warning; the village will go after you to get to him. Be careful who you trust." Teuchi's face never once broke its hard stare. This was a serious matter and he was looking out for the people Naruto cared about.

"Don't worry. When I'm done, the village will respect the name Uzumaki, and our enemies will fear it." Haruhi smiled.

Teuchi had seen that smile a few times in his life, mostly from his wife, and every time, someone paid dearly. Teuchi turned to get ready for the morning rush as Haruhi left for the tower. Ayame however turned on her father and started to grill the poor man for any information on the failed adoption of Naruto into her family, even kicking him in the shins to get him to talk.

Haruhi was in the Hokage's office in seconds upon arrival; Sarutobi had been expecting her. After Haruhi had left to find Naruto last night, he had left orders to let her in as soon as she arrived. Sarutobi had gathered everything he had stored away for Naruto it was all in Minato's old chest, the same old chest that was now sitting on the Hokage's desk.

Sarutobi was expecting the conversation to be unpleasant. He expected an upset mother to barge in ranting and raving about the village's treatment to her son, however that didn't happen. Instead Haruhi walked in, bowed, and greeted him with respect, before politely sitting down on one of the chairs in front of his desk.

He didn't know if this was a good or bad thing. The Hokage would much rather have preferred the hysterical mother. At least he knew where he stood with that. This was just nerve wracking. Sarutobi watched for any signs of hostility she might hold towards him.

"How did it go with Naruto?" He asked, testing the waters. It felt like a safe question.

"It went well. He has accepted that I'm his mother and he introduces me as such. He himself does not call me mom, but I not going to push it. I haven't been there for 12 years and I'm not going to demand that he addresses me till he feels I've deserve the title." Haruhi stated in a flat tone.

Sarutobi gave her a sideways look, "But you're his mother. You gave birth to him."

Haruhi had a sad look on her face now. "Just because I gave birth to him doesn't mean I get the title of 'mom'. The one who raised him does. To bad no one tried." Haruhi felt she had to ask. "Except for the chef at the ramen stand. Is it true that he was denied the chance to adopt Naruto?"

That was new information.

"I don't know. Konoha's a ninja village. Our adoption program is rather large for all the children that lose family members in the line of duty." Thinking it over. "I don't see adoption papers. They all go to someone else. If I saw and approved of every adoption, I wouldn't get anything else done." Sarutobi sighed. "Naruto was an orphan the same time as the war time orphans, and add on the kyuubi attack orphans. A lot of kids lost family then, and I doubt I would have ever seen the adoption papers for anyone with all the other things that went on."

"I see. Do you know who is in charge of the adoption program?" The question was simple, but Haruhi's tone suggested otherwise.

"I believe it is Haruno Tsuruya. She will be at the meeting being held in a few hours. The program is rather large, and the counsel has granted a seat for the head of the program to help discuss the budgets. I was going to invite you as the head of yours and Minato's clan. That is, if you want to take such a position?"

Sarutobi was hoping she would accept. He needed allies to help protect Naruto in power, but from the way Haruhi was talking about this adoption business, she was out for blood.

Haruhi smiled evilly at the idea of walking into the meeting and devouring the entire counsel. If it weren't for the fact that it would hurt her son's already non-existent chances at becoming Hokage, she would have done just that.

"I'll need a compound for the future of the Uzumaki clan, and all of the rights needed to claim the title of a clan. I will also need proof of Naruto's heritage and my marriage to Minato-kun."

Sarutobi was prepared for that. Motioning to the chest, "It is all in here. The deed to the compound, marriage certificates, birth certificates, and some other things I thought Naruto would like to have seen when I told him the truth."

Haruhi stood and walk over to get a better look. The chest, she thought sadly. The same chest that she thought had looked out of place in Minato's bedroom, when she first came to this place. Inside the chest was everything the old man had said. Haruhi also found a picture of her with Minato, Anko, Kakashi, and Rin.

She was pregnant at the time and they were all happy. Anko and Rin were smiling, but also giving each other death-glares. They had been fighting on who would be the 'cool-big-sister' and the 'not-so-cool aunt'. Kakashi was crouched in front giving his eye-smile. Haruhi had always wondered how he could get his eye to express all his emotions while the rest of his face was covered.

Minato had his arms wrapped around her and she had her hand on her stomach; she was several months along then. She wanted to cry while looking at the picture, at how happy they all were. The emotions were overwhelming.

Looking through the chest some more, she found her cheongsam from the night she met her husband, along side Minato's trench coat and his haiti-ate. Haruhi grabbed his white coat and hugged it, remembering. Her husband wore the coat almost everywhere. It still had his scent. The coat was sill in good shape, even over all these years. "Excuse me." She could not let Sarutobi see that she was about to cry.

Haruhi left with all the clothes in hand. Sarutobi turned to the fourth's face on the Hokage monument. "Things are starting to look up for your son, Yondaime. Please look out for him and your wife from wherever you are." Sarutobi prayed. Seeing as Haruhi might be a while, he went back to work until she returned.

It took longer than expected for her to pull herself together, but Haruhi did return, wearing the dark blue cheongsam. She also wore Minato's coat over it and his haiti-ate tided around her neck like a shy Hyuuga does with hers. It was quiet a fashion statement, but she looks just like she did 12 years ago.

However, no one would have any doubt about what clan she belonged to. Walking up to the desk, the fox laid the ANBU uniform on Sarutobi's desk, neatly folded. Haruhi had a far away look, as if lost in old memories. The thing was, they weren't old to her.

"Haruhi?" Sarutobi asked with concern in his eyes.

He never liked that look on anyone. The look of regret over the past; most of his ninja had that look at one point or another, usually after a failed mission or the loss of a friend. He and everybody else have dealt with their feelings about the past… she was dealing with them now.

She was dealing with the death of her beloved husband.

Haruhi shook her head to clear her thoughts; there would be time for that later. "What else is in the chest?" She was doing her best to ignore Sarutobi's look. Sarutobi took mercy and stepped up to look himself.

"Let me see. Minato had done all of the paperwork for the Uzumaki clan to be formed. He was going to surprise you when you felt better after giving birth, but things changed those plans. Jiraiya filled me in on the situation about your brother and the key."

Sarutobi's voice went deeper and his eye went cold. "If you had told us earlier, we could have been prepared. We could have saved your son and Minato."

Haruhi took a deep breath. She was going to snap back, but decided against it. At this point it didn't matter and she already knew that fact already. "Do you think I don't know that? You think I wanted what happened to occur? I loved Minato, and I love Naruto. If there were anything you could have done to stop what had happened, I would have gladly told you. However, what could you do? What possible plan would have worked?"

Sarutobi was quiet. The truth was, she was right. Her brother was incredibly strong and went through Konoha's ninjas like he was skipping through flowers. "The only thing we could have done was hide the key and get 2 different people as scarifies for the sealer and the jailer. I'll admit we might have saved you some casualties, but the outcome would have been the same, if not worse." Haruhi continued somberly. "You know as well as I do that Minato would never let anyone sacrifice themselves or their child in place of him and Naruto."

Sarutobi lowered his head. "Your right. I'm sorry for attacking you, but that night is a sore spot for me. I know the jutsu that Minato used, and I would have gladly taken his place if I could."

"I know old man, but he would never have let you. He was a good man and died protecting the place and people he loved." Haruhi took a deep breath, "He would want you to help me though. I need your help righting the wrongs done to Naruto. You can make it up to my foolish husband by doing that at least."

Haruhi was going to need help to fight the counsel without ripping all their hearts out. The Hokage of the village would be a big help. "Now about the key. I need it back. I noticed I didn't have it, but the world's safety could wait. My son is what's important right now, but if you have the key I would be very appreciative to have it back."

Sarutobi sighed. "Jiraiya has it. Knowing him, he probably gave it to a hooker for a one night stand."

"That is not funny Hokage-sama." Sarutobi winced at how she called him Hokage.

"He is a good shinobi. I'm sure he hasn't let anyone see the key, let alone touch it." Sarutobi stated more seriously.

Haruhi sighed this time. "Where is the pervert now?"

"He is out running the spy network right now, but he should be back by the chunin exams."

"I see, please inform me when he returns."

Sarutobi nodded. "Now for the meeting, you'll need the marriage and birth certificates, and Minato's letter explaining why he hid his real name. Everything else can come later."

Sarutobi went on explaining what to expect, whom she could and couldn't trust. He also went over what they were going to do to get the counsel to quickly accept all Haruhi's claims. He knew some of the counsel would fight Haruhi, but if they played their cards right, and did not mention Naruto until it was too late… Haruhi would be well on her way to build the Uzumaki clan into a power to be reckoned with.

Naruto was irritated.

He was bored, waiting for his sensei with 2 people that hardly registered him as a blip on their radar. This led him to become irritated.

He was also annoyed. Sakura had tried to get Sasuke into a conversation every few minutes, even after several failed attempts. All the while, she wascompletely ignoring Naruto. He would be more than happy to talk to her if she just gave him a chance.

This led to even more irritation.

He had been 15 minutes late to the meeting time. Sakura had yelled at him for being late while Sasuke brooded in his own world. That was as far as any conversation with Naruto went.

Naruto had tried to get the dark haired brooder to talk, only to receive a 'don't talk to me dope.' Naruto, being Naruto, wouldn't stand for that and countered with a 'Hey, we're a team teme,' to which Sakura decided to intervene with 'don't bother Sasuke-kun, Naruto. Sasuke and I are a team. You were just put here because you're dead last.'

Ouch…

Yes, Naruto would admit the only reason he was with Sasuke was because he was dead last and Sasuke was rookie of the year. They always stuck the best with the worst when forming teams. Still, Naruto didn't like being reminded.

Naruto then walked off and sat by himself. His time with his mother on the subject of girls came back to haunt him a little.

"_Why didn't you ask her out?"_

"_What? Why?" _

"_She clearly likes you. She's cu__te, and far nicer than your teammate." _

"Hinata doesn't like me. Every time she gets close to me, she turns all red and most of the time she faints. And don't talk about Sakura-chan that way! She is smart, and pretty, and funny and did I mention pretty?"

"_Got it bad for the Sakura chick huh? You know, a girl only turns red around the boy she likes. That would explain why Sakura turns red around Sasuke. That is why Hinata turned red when she was near you. She faints because she really likes you. My son's a heart throb and he doesn't even know which girls to go after." _

"_You don't know what __you're talking about."_

"Honey, I'm a girl. I know exactly what I'm talking about."

Looking over at his crush, he did notice the slight pink in her face. It came and went with every attempt to get the attention of their teammate.

Sasuke was in a tree about 15 yards away. Sakura was directly below him. Neither had asked about yesterday and why he had been called to the Hokage's office and after what happened a little earlier, he wasn't going to tell them just to spite them. He would tell them later, but right now he needed some space.

Naruto was once again bored. He had been listening to Sakura failing attempt at getting Sasuke to talk for the umpteenth time. Her voice was sounding more desperate as time passed. Naruto wanted to defend her, but the last time he tried was still fresh in his head. He started to day dream and the memories of his mother flashed through his mind.

It had been 2 days, not even that, but he had learned so much in that short time.

As he recollected upon this morning, the alarm clock's death came to mind. He was thrilled to see that his mom had skills that he could learn. He thought back on what his mom told him about the technique she had performed.

'_Gather my chakra into a ball and condense __it, then point and shoot.'_

Naruto held his finger out in front of him and closed his eyes. He concentrated his chakra in his finger. It was a lot harder than he had expected. The chakra wouldn't form a ball at the tip of his finger like his mom did. Chakra gathered in his finger just fine though.

Sasuke noticed Naruto out of the corner of his eye. He had no idea what his teammate was doing. He decided to watch though. _'__Maybe the dope knows something.'_

Without the sharingan, all he saw was Naruto holding his finger out with his closed eyes.

Not that interesting, if you didn't consider the fact that Naruto's finger was glowing from all the chakra being pumped into it. Sakura hadn't noticed, what with the fact that she was either looking at the ground or at Sasuke.

Several minutes went by and Naruto was no farther along at forming a ball with his chakra than before. Naruto was just about to completely give up on the jutsu, at least until he got more information from Haruhi.

'_Well I might as well try to shoot it. Mom said point and shoot…how do you __shoot?' _

Pointing his finger at a tree that was in the opposite direction of pink and brooder, "Shoot…Fire…Go..." Nothing happened for any of the commands he thought of. He finally gave up, letting go of the chakra that he had gathered. He thought that the chakra would dissipate like normal; what he got was a blue bullet of chakra being shot from his finger at the targeted tree.

The blue bullet shattered and disappeared upon impacting the tree. Naruto launched himself at the tree to inspect the damage. His eyes couldn't pick up anything. The tree looked undamaged, as if nothing even happened. "It worked… sort of." He whispered to himself.

"Hey dope. What type of jutsu was that?" Sasuke asked. He had been watching the whole thing and found the jutsu… interesting. Sakura had heard Naruto call out several commands and was able watch him fire off his finger as well. She too became interested in what Naruto was doing, and had followed Sasuke over to Naruto.

"I don't know teme. All I know was that I did it wrong. Haruhi-chan told me to focus my chakra into a ball at the end of my finger. I couldn't seem to get that part." Naruto answered without thinking.

Sakura caught Naruto's slip. "Haruhi taught that to you? Why would that thing teach you anything? Why would you listen for that matter?"

Naruto growled at what Sakura had just said about his mother. Sakura took a step back in fear. Naruto had never acted in anger towards her, and it scared her.

Naruto was the class clown who had a crush on her. Always smiling, always at the end of some prank or joke. This was not the Naruto she remembered. "Haruhi isn't a thing. She is a nice and kind person. Don't ever forget that."

"Calm down Naruto, alright I'm sorry. I didn't mean it." Sakura had her hands up in a surrender type fashion. Naruto snorted and crossed his arms. He had forgiven the pink haired girl, but he was still upset at the insult. _'What could have made Naruto so protective of the demon'_ Sakura thought to herself.

"How does the jutsu work, dope?" Sasuke had watched the whole thing and was admittedly shocked that Naruto would defend Haruhi from Sakura. It was no secret that Naruto had been crushing on Sakura for years now. He hid his surprise though, and shoved the thoughts to the back of his mind to figure out later. Right now there was a jutsu that was staring him in the face and he wanted to know it.

"Like I would tell you if I knew. Haruhi-chan only told me the basics and I only saw the jutsu once. She didn't even tell me its name. Why do you even care, teme?" Naruto snapped.

He was still mad at Sakura, and was more than happy to take it out on Sasuke.

Sakura's fear was long gone at the first insult Naruto shot at Sasuke. "Naruto, Sasuke-kun is just worried about you. You should be nicer to him. You know Sasuke-kun could learn the jutsu faster and help you learn it later. Isn't that right Sasuke-kun?" Sakura was proud of herself thinking she put out a possible bomb ready to explode.

She had succeeded. Both Sasuke and Naruto rolled their eyes. They understood each other way better then she understood either of them. Naruto knew Sasuke would never be worried about him. Sasuke wouldn't help Naruto at all after he got what he wanted.

Sasuke then realized that everything he had witnessed Naruto do, was all that Naruto could teach at the moment. Sasuke didn't need Naruto's help gathering chakra into a ball, so he turned and left for his tree.

Sakura was about to fallow Sasuke, but stopped and without turning around, "Umm…Naruto…I'm sorry about earlier. I didn't mean what I said. We are a team, regardless of the reasons. I'm…I'm just having a bad day."

Naruto was quiet for a few seconds. He digested Sakura's word and when everything registered, Naruto smiled. "Hey Sakura-chan, you want to go get ramen some time?"

Sakura was going to yell at Naruto for being an idiot. It was so normal for her that it was a base reaction now. However, she caught herself, and in doing so managed to catch Naruto's tone.

It wasn't pleading or asking for anything. It was more like…she couldn't quite describe it. For some reason she got 'it's okay' out of it instead. "Maybe some other time." Turning her head and smiling. "I'm going to make sure Sasuke isn't upset."

With that, she was underneath Sasuke's branch, trying to get him to talk once again.

Naruto grumbled so Sakura wouldn't hear, "When is the teme ever not upset?" Naruto went back to his tree and sat down. He crossed his arms, "WHERE THE HELL IS KAKASHI-SENSEI?"

Ten 'o'clock had rolled around, and the time between now and a few hours back was filled with nothing but Haruhi and the Hokage planning out every lie and fouls assumptions. They wanted to get the approval from the counsel as fast as possible.

A clan could not be formed if either the majority of the counsel or the Hokage refused its formation. A clan could only be dissolved with a unanimous vote from the counsel and the Hokage's approval of such a vote.

This was what protected all of clans from being persecuted for helping either the Hokage or the counsel against the other. This also made it so that all of the members of a clan are not punished for something if part of, or even most of the clan member's partook in major crimes. In short, if the counsel formed the Uzumaki clan without realizing it, without the Hokage's approval, they couldn't disband it later.

Minato had filled out all the paper work to form a clan, but hadn't had the time to get approval. Sarutobi obviously approved of the Uzumaki clan. The counsel however, would refuse any clan to form if Naruto was part of it.

Haruhi had told Sarutobi about her idea of a coma explaining her 12-year absence. Sarutobi wanted to find a better excuse if possible, but then she informed him that she had already used it, on the Hyuuga heiress no less. He sighed and accepted that part of the plan. It wasn't that hard to find a coma victim in the hospital records though, which for Haruhi, simply didn't exist.

They had covered several other topics as well.

Haruhi and Sarutobi had purposely waited for the counsel to take their seats before they even left his office. Some ANBU charged with keeping an eye on the counsel had informed Sarutobi that the counsel arrived and awaited him.

"All right Haruhi, stay out here until I call you… and please, don't kill anyone." Sarutobi joked, trying to lighten the mood.

"I'll try not to, old man." Sarutobi got worried from her tone.

It suggested anything but a joke. Hopefully everything went as planned, but being the hokage had taught Sarutobi one important thing. Plans rarely last longer than the first few steps. He wasn't worried about Haruhi thinking on her feet though.

Haruhi took her place next to the door and leaned against the wall, waiting for the Hokage's call. Taking a deep breath Sarutobi walked in.

What greeted him was possibly the most powerful people within all of Konoha, but the ninja side looked bored and the civilian side looked like they need enemas. The counsel was roughly split down the middle between civilians and ninja heads. The ninja were from the clans. The civilians were representatives from various groups.

"Hokage-sama, how are you? It isn't like you to be late for a counsel meeting. Is there something we should be aware of?"

Sarutobi looked up at the man who had just addressed him. The tone the man used suggested that he knew something, or at least that was what he got. Reading a Hyuuga's words or facial expressions was an art in itself that took years to master.

The man had long, dark hair and pale lavender eyes. It was Hyuuga Hiashi himself, the representative and head of the famous Hyuuga clan. His clan, currently the strongest in the village and the closest thing to royalty, commanded respect from everyone, including the other clans in the village that, in all respects, were the Hyuuga's equal. This has led the Hyuuga clan to be possibly the most stuck-up people Sarutobi has ever met, and being Hokage had allowed him numerous opportunities to meet with many of such people the Uchiha being amongst them, prior to the… incident.

Frankly, the Hokage wasn't surprised. After Haruhi had informed him that she had met Hinata, Hiashi's daughter, Sarutobi had figured that Hiashi would have known of the Kyuubi-woman-in-hiding by now. "Yes actually, I do have some news for the counsel that I am certain you will appreciate." That got everyone's attention. "But first, let's get this meeting in order."

The process was rather simple. In fact, it reminded them all of their time spent in school. Sarutobi started with the roll call of the counsel representatives, the room they're in being nothing more than a glorified classroom. The fact that it was in the Hokage tower didn't change that. Most of the counsel members on the ninja side believed roll call was a waste of time, but it was procedure. What can you do about it?

"I see everyone is here."

'_You knew__ that __as soon as you walked into the room,'_ was the collective thought shared throughout the counsel.

Sarutobi took a look around and after taking a few puffs from his pipe, asked, "Why has this meeting been called?"

Koharu stood to address the counsel, standing on the civilian side of the room, even though she was Sarutobi's teammate back when they were younger. When Sarutobi was named the Sondaime, Koharu and Homura agreed to be his advisers. In the end, they did little advising, and more delegating.

The clans knew what to bring to the Hokage's attention and what to take care of them selves. The civilians on the other hand… didn't. Both were left with the task of handling most of the civilian problems.

"We of the counsel believe there has been a mistake with the formation of genin Team Seven. We would like to suggest changes that should be made, to correct such mistakes." Koharu was professional in her statement and showed little to no emotion.

Koharu was no Hyuuga at hiding facial expressions, but outwardly she seemed impartial to the subject at hand. Sarutobi knew better. Koharu was the one to first to suggest executing Naruto upon the knowledge of what the Yondaime had done with the demon fox.

Sarutobi had known that this was coming. After the discussion that had taken place between the old Hokage and his two advisers, he knew that the meeting today would broach on this topic. Still, it annoyed him that the counsel would bring this up at an official meeting.

The formation of teams was left to the teachers at the academy, the future jonin instructors, and the Hokage. The counsel had almost no say in the whole formation process at all. Some clans do put in their ideas for teams, from time to time. Team 10 was a prime example of this, what with the fact that the genin's fathers were once all on a team together. It was even rumored that they all had children at the same time to get them to be on the same team.

"I see." Narrowing his eyes and giving his old teammate the coldest stare he could, Sarutobi went into to full Hokage mode. "And the discussion we had yesterday did not satisfy you?" His words were more a statement than a question and his tone spoke volumes of what he felt about what the counsel was trying to do.

Koharu swallowed a chunk of saliva in fear. The counsel woman always felt sick when she disagreed with Sarutobi.

Sarutobi, Homura, and Koharu had been really close as a team, and wouldn't hesitate to support each other. However, with Sarutobi firmly supporting Naruto in almost everything and the two adviser's belief that the blond boy should be handled differently, the bond the three once shared was nearly destroyed.

Homura stood in support of his fellow adviser. He could clearly see her distress in his old teammate's eyes. "Hokage-sama, we believe that the boy should be moved to another team. Koharu and I are not the only ones who would agree. We would not have brought the subject up otherwise."

Sarutobi made a show that he was now addressing the room as a whole. "Ladies and gentlemen of this counsel, are my old teammates correct in their claim that there are more of you who wish for Naruto to be removed from team seven?" Not everyone nodded in confirmation, but enough that if the topic wasn't addressed now, Sarutobi would be hearing about his decision for months to come.

Sighing, "Very well, we will discuss Team Seven's roster."

Sarutobi took a deep breath behind his hat. Only the ninjas of the counsel caught it, but it was so well hidden that some of the counsel members thought it was their imagination.

'_Time to see if all that planning was worth it.'_

"Haruhi-san, please join us. You will also have a say in matter involving Konoha from now on. Please introduce yourself."

All heads turned as the door opened and Haruhi walked in. The disguised fox took her place next to Sarutobi. Several gasped could be heard. It was clear that her outfit had indeed made a statement. Only the ninja could tell that the haiti-ate was Minato's. To the civilians, the makeshift necklace was a slab of metal stitched to some clothe.

To the ninja, there were hundreds if not thousands of small dents and scratches. Each one told a story of the wearer's career and left a unique fingerprint for each ninja. Only experienced shinobi can read such things and correctly identify the owner, and even then one had to have seen the haiti-ate enough to memorize each blemish on the metal. Minato was a hero and every elite jonin made it a mission to remember his haiti-ate.

What really attracted everyone's attention was the coat she was wearing. Haruhi could walk down the street and everyone would have recognized it. Only one other person wore a white trench coat with red flame trim and 'Yondaime' written on the back.

Haruhi bowed, "It is an honor to meet all of you. My name is Haruhi and it is a pleasure to be here." _'And if I had a chance, all of you would be dead at my hands.'_

Hiashi at a young age was taught to hide all emotion when dealing with anyone who isn't a Hyuuga. The pale-eyed man failed the old lesson miserably. His jaw was hanging open and his eyes were wide. Haruhi fit Hinata's description almost to a T. The change in hair color was unexpected though, and he made a mental note to go over observation with his eldest daughter. Collecting himself, he now had a decision to make. He knew this was Naruto's mother from Hinata, but should he let the others know?

Behind him another counsel member was in shock. Memories of a pregnant woman giving her a death glare that made her freeze and pass out had shoved all other thoughts to the back of her brain. It had been 12 years since she last saw Haruhi, but that night was forever ingrained in her mind.

Haruhi wasn't normal and the counsel woman knew it from that first time, when Minato had asked for her help with his wife. At the time, she was more than willing to help. Minato letting her into the circle of trust also honored her. After that night though, she questioned Minato's sanity for marrying that woman. Haruhi was… is very powerful and she would never question that.

It was only a matter of time before one of the counsel members stood and pointed an accusing finger at Haruhi. "How dare you insult or beloved Yondaime by wearing his clothes? Who do you think you are?"

Haruhi just smiled. _'This is going to be fun.'_ "Can a woman not wear her husband's clothes, or has your wife never worn your clothes going to bed before?" That statement brought even more gasps. Haruhi, feeling the need to go on, chirped, "I'm also wearing the cheongsam I received from that kind receptionist after Minato tore all my close off that night we were caught… you know. If that helps?"

Several faces went red at the idea of Minato going at it like an animal. Sarutobi groaned and buried his face into his hand. He had asked Haruhi to behave, and here she is trying to give the counsel a heart attack! The old man wasn't going to stop her though, as long as she didn't cross curtain lines.

"You lie." The man's voice hissed. "The Fourth never got married. Hokage-sama, how can you let this women do this?"

"Haruhi's claim is no lie. I was the one who wedded them. The Fourth had asked for a small wedding to protect Haruhi." Sarutobi paused to let that sink in. "I'm sure some of you remembered the Iwa Nin that we captured over 12 years back. It was that very nin that led the fourth to make such a decision." Mostly everyone remembered the spy. It had nearly led to another war between Iwa and Konoha.

The counselor that had accused Haruhi of lying didn't however. "Where are the guards!? She clearly has the Hokage under a genjutsu!" Every head rounded on the man and gave him a hard stare. The man all of a sudden didn't feel so confident in his accusations anymore. "What?"

Nara Shikaku was the first to answer his fellow counselor. "The Hokage is a seasoned and powerful ninja, he wouldn't be Hokage otherwise. I doubt Haruhi-san would be able to cast a genjutsu on the Hokage. Also, there are over a dozen ninja in this room that are seasoned jonins, including myself. There is also a Hyuuga sitting right here in this room. Your accusation that a genjutsu could fool all of us is insulting. I suggest you sit down."

The man did just that, feeling like an idiot. "I'm sorry, but I just don't believe that the Yondaime wouldn't tell anyone from the counsel." It was a legitimate concern; the counselor had just gone about questioning Haruhi wrong.

Haruhi smiled at the man, which unnerved him even more. "We did tell one of the counsel, even though she wasn't on the counsel at the time." Turning to a dark haired woman in the back of the shinobi section. "Isn't that right, Uchiha Makoto?"

Makoto wanted to disappear as all eyes turned to her. Since Makoto had taken the place as the clan head, being the only living adult from the clan, she had always remained quiet during the meetings. The jonin was a strong woman and dedicated to protecting Konoha, but she would be the first to admit that she hated public speaking and counsel meetings. It required a certain amount of dignity and finesse that she really never had.

Makoto came from a small family that wasn't part of any major clan. Her family was overjoyed when Uchiha Fugaku started courting her. She fell in love with Fugaku and was more than happy to marry him when he proposed. That was her first real taste of nobility and a wealthier life style.

Makoto was a skilled Konohichi and could memorize long detailed battle plans in seconds, but put three different forks in front of her and all you'll get is 'a fork is a fork' as she grabs the biggest one and eats the entire meal with it.

"Makoto-san helped me with some female things when I was with Minato-kun." Haruhi needed to make it appear that she wasn't pregnant and Makoto was the only one who knew the truth.

Makoto was a little surprised at Haruhi words, but she hid it. Makoto had learned rather quickly to mask as many emotions as possible within the counsel. _'Why didn't she say that she was pregnant?'_

Makoto looked up at Haruhi and when their eyes met, everything was explained. Haruhi was giving a pleading look for her to keep her mouth shut. _'She's keeping it a secret for now. All right Haruhi, I'll play along because I owe it to Minato.'_

"Yes, the Fourth had asked me to help Haruhi-san with a problem she was having. I was unable to finish though." Makoto remembered on the report after the Kyuubi attack that she along with her child had perished.

Makoto watched every word that came out of her mouth. "Tell me Haruhi, how did the problem go? Did everything work out?"

Haruhi's smile grew in size. "The problem was taken care of and I couldn't be happier with the outcome."

Makoto smiled at the news. Everyone in that room was absolutely lost in that game of words the two women had just shared. Everyone accept Hiashi. The Hyuuga took in every word and dissected them for every clue. Haruhi would have paled if she knew what Hiashi had gathered from that conversation.

This was turning out more interesting than Hiashi previously believed.

"From the report we received from the Hokage, we believe you…"

"Yes, I lied to protect Haruhi from Minato's enemies. She had fallen into a coma during the attack and I believed Iwa and Kumo would be more than happy to kill her at that time. I am sorry I lied to the counsel, but it was for the safety of Minato's wife." Sarutobi cut in. He saw that question coming a mile away and honestly had no answer that would ensure that the counsel would remain ignorant of Naruto being Haruhi's son.

So he waited patiently for some one to ask that very question and cut them off before the part about Naruto was mentioned. Continuing so no one else could finish the question, "Haruhi would like to rebuild Minato's clan and I…"

'_So the Hokage is helping Haruhi keep her secret.' _Hiashi thought as Sarutobi went on about Haruhi wanting to rebuild her husband's clan. He saw what the Sondaime was doing and he was positive others had also caught on, but he wasn't completely sure.

Feeling as if something was watching him, Hiashi looked up only to be met with a pair of red eyes. They were narrow and cold, Haruhi was staring the man down. Hiashi stared back without missing a beat. The game of politics was his battleground of choice after all, and Hiashi was very good at it.

'_He knows! Burn you bastard,' _was the only thought running through her head. Kyuubis are incredibly powerful creatures and could almost achieve anything. Despite popular belief though, making people spontaneously combust with their eyes was not one of them. There was that one time though…

'_She __knows that I know__. Let see if you have it all figured out.' _Waiting for Sarutobi to finish, he carefully asked, "Tell me Haruhi-san, why do you not use your husbands name Namikaze? I would also like to see the marriage certificates, if you don't mind?" Hiashi held a straight face and an even tone, but the battle between Hyuuga and Kyuubi was well under way.

Yes, Hiashi could just blurt out what he knew, but that wouldn't be sporting in Hiashi's eyes. He'd much rather test and prod his opponent in a game of words. It was his way of seeing if his opponent deserved the Hyuuga's support. The Hyuuga will not have a weak ally and he could always blackmail the information later. Hiashi also respected the Hokage if he wanted Haruhi to have her clan. Then he wouldn't make too much of an argument.

Haruhi retrieved two sheets of paper and performed a jutsu that copied the documents onto several sheets of paper. The papers would disappear in a little while, but everyone will be able to see what is on them.

Handing them out, she stated, "The first document is our marriage certificate. As you can see everything is in order."

The certificate was simple. It stated that the Haruhi and Minato were married and was signed by both, along with Sarutobi's signature. Everyone did notice that neither Minato nor Haruhi signed with his or her clan name.

Haruhi continued, "The second document was a speech Minato-kun was writing to recite to the entire village. Please understand that it was not written for the counsel and it isn't finished. He died before he could." The letter read.

Citizens of Konoha, I have a confession to make to you all. Most of you know that I am not from this village. That I had moved here before the war with Iwa. I am from Uzi, the hidden village of whirlpool.

_My Name is also not Namikaze. _

_My family was powerful __and beloved__ in Uzi. We were the unofficial leaders of the village. Uzi was small, but we were growing in __power, and Iwa__ saw us as a threat. Iwa attack Uzi and tried to wipe out my clan. With us out of the way, Uzi would be leaderless and would be unable to mount any form of organized resistance to their occupation. _

_My older sister and I escaped from the massacre that had consumed my family. She died shortly after from her wounds. I was five at the time. For several __years, I wondered__around, learning what__ I could to survive. I came across Jiraiya when I was ten and he brought me to Konoha. He changed my name to protect Konoha and I from Iwa. He believed that they would come for me should they find out I survived the attack. Iwa at the time did not fear Konoha._

That was it.

Many of the counsel members were in shock; they couldn't believe what they had just read. If the document was true, then Minato had lied to the entire village for over 15 years. One of the civilian Counsel members was about to rise and yell that this was impossible.

Luckily for Haruhi and Sarutobi, Inuzuka Tsume spoke first.

"It doesn't matter. The Fourth is and will always be a hero to Konoha, regardless of what we call him." Those words shut any form of protest up. "I will support Haruhi in her decision to form a clan. Whether she takes the name Namikaze, or Minato's real name." Looking up at the white haired woman, "If you don't mind, may we know our Fourth's real name?"

Haruhi sighed, "Unfortunately, yes. I have been bed ridden for 12 years and Minato's enemies are still out there. I will not be taking any names until I can protect myself without any help." That answer seemed to satisfy mostly everyone.

The other clans would be more than happy to protect Haruhi, but they couldn't watch her all the time. Waiting a little while before Minato's wife announced forming his clan was acceptable to everyone.

"I do plan on taking his real name, when the time comes."

"…Haruhi-san, did Minato teach you anything that would help in our decision making and does your blood give the village any benefits at all?" Danzo asked. Judging from his face, Minato's confession didn't even faze him.

Danzo sat in the civilian section, but he technically should be on the ninja side. He ran the ninja group known as Roots, a shadow group that went where Sarutobi's ANBU couldn't. Sarutobi didn't like it, but he understood the necessity for such an organization. He was the Hokage, and he needed to appear clean of any crime. Assassinations within Konoha to keep the peace were left to Danzo.

Haruhi looked up at the man. _'__So…this is__ the man that wanted to make my Naruto a weapon.' _"If you are referring to his famous jutsu that gave him the title the Yellow Flash, yes, he had started to teach me. With time and what I know, I believe I would be able to perform and teach the jutsu to the clan I wish to build."

That got several intakes of breath. Unfortunately for them, that was a lie. Minato hadn't taught her anything at all. A little white lie wouldn't hurt though. And besides, Haruhi had Minato's scrolls; she could always figure them out later. "Also, my family's bloodline limit is enhanced healing and a second chakra system."

"Would you care to share some more details on them?" Danzo asked.

"Enhanced healing is just that, enhanced healing. My family heals faster than a normal person this allows us to shrug off wounds that may knock out or even kill anyone else. The second chakra system gives me double the chakra, plain and simple." Haruhi stated as if addressing a class.

This brought a smirk on Danzo's weathered face. "I support Haruhi-san in her formation of her clan." _'If I can get her to marry one of my Roots officers, I'll have several new weapons at my disposal'_

Everyone under Danzo's thumb, which was practically all of the civilians, promptly agreed to support Haruhi. Haruhi bowed to Danzo. _'Just a little more and then I can drop the bomb shell.'_

Sarutobi had never liked Danzo, but he has to admit, every now and then he had his uses.

"Shall we put it to a vote? All in favor to allow Haruhi-san to form her clan, raise your hand." Every hand in the civilian side was raised, and over half on the ninja side raised their hands.

The ones that didn't just wanted to ask more questions. Some even remembered that there was a child in the report of Haruhi's death. They had also caught Sarutobi answering Hiashi's question rather fast and were curious as to why, but it was too late now.

Haruhi's clan was formed.

Haruhi bowed to everyone, "Thank you all." _'Heh eh eh, suckers!'_

Sarutobi smiled, "Please Haruhi-san, find a seat and we will continue our discussion on Team Seven." Haruhi did as she was told and walked over to Makoto and sat next to her. Haruhi didn't trust the Uchiha clan, but technically Makoto wasn't an Uchiha by blood, and besides, Minato trusted her.

Sarutobi continued as soon as Haruhi was seated. "Now, everyone in favor of changing Team Seven's roster, raise your hands." All the civilians raised their hands, while all but one of the ninja's kept their hands on the desks. Luckily there were more clans than civilian representatives.

This vote only opened the debate; it was a good way to see who was on whose side.

Haruno Tsuruya stood, "How could you not support the removal of that thing from the Uchiha boy? Makoto-san, surely you do not approve of that creature being around your son."

Makoto never liked how people treated her Sasuke. He wasn't royalty, and just because he may be the last Sharingan user doesn't mean he should get special treatment. Makoto valued the people who work for what they earned. She even knew that the only reason her husband saw her as a possible wife was for her skill as a ninja; Fugaku had said as much right before he died.

Makoto, looking Tsuruya dead in the eye, "You forget that if the Uzumaki boy were removed from Team Seven, he would be placed with one of their sons or daughters and don't lie about your reasons. We all know you want to keep Naruto away from your daughter. I personally don't have a problem with the boy." Makoto added the last part more for Haruhi sake than anyone else.

Technically, what Makoto said about the clans not wanting Naruto around their children wasn't true. Most of the ninja believed the counsel shouldn't get involved in the formation of teams. The teachers were the ones who knew the student's skills the best for team placement after all. If they got involved for Naruto and Sasuke, then that would leave them open for more change later on.

Makoto had met Naruto a few times around the village. At first she was like everyone else, and shunned him without thinking, but after the massacre, she saw things differently.

Sasuke had a look of being alone. Yes, some of his family survived, but he was closest to his brother and father. He had a look on his face that she had seen on Naruto's several times, and whenever Sasuke smiled for his family… Makoto could see the pain behind it, and once again was reminded of Naruto. Only then did she give the boy second looks and was politer to him.

One day, Naruto was running through the streets from a person he had just taken his form of revenge on. He wasn't paying attention and had bumped into her. Makoto helped him up and wiped some dirt away from his face, like she had done for Sasuke a few times, and that was when she saw it.

He was Minato for a split second. Then the whisker marks she never noticed before were staring her in the face. Naruto thanked Makoto and ran off. Makoto walked home in a stupor. 'It can't be. That's not possible,' was her only thought for days. Makoto kept the information to herself, but with Haruhi back, and hiding the fact that she had a child from everyone, but her. That was all the proof she needed.

Makoto turned to the woman on the other side of her. "Haruhi-san, for what possible reason do you want Team Seven to be separated?"

Haruhi smiled and lowered her hand, "I've met Team Seven and I don't want my son anywhere near that pink haired fan-girl or… no offence Makoto, but your son has some issues."

All heads snapped in Haruhi's direction. Haruhi's grin grew with every look of revelation she saw till her smile threatened to split her face.

"I know how you all have been treating my son, and I would gladly make you all pay, if it wasn't for the fact that it would reflect badly on Naruto." Her smile took a very sinister look, and her eye started to glow. She looked like an animal that had just found its prey. Even Sarutobi shuddered. Haruhi's gazed slowly turned to Haruno Tsuruya. "You and I are going to talk very soon."

The Haruno woman eeped.

Naruto walked into his apartment beat tired.

Haruhi, humming a tune he had never heard before, greeted the blond. "Ohayo Naruto-kun how was your day?"

"Long, I got tied to a tree and was completely made fun of. Kakashi-sensei didn't even show up till ten. Sakura-chan turned me down again, but we passed Kakashi's bell test." Naruto smiled at the last part. He was officially a genin now. "Oh yah…I also got a new alarm clock."

Haruhi giggled, "So this is what it's like to be a mother." Licking her thumb and wiping some of the dirt of Naruto's face, "I got good news. Tomorrow, we are going to move into our new compound. I got approval from the counsel to start our clan." She growled at the last few words.

Naruto was quiet. Then, all at once, exploded with excitement.

"REALLY!! NO WAY!! We have to celebrate at Ichiraku's. I'm part of a clan! I can't believe it!" Naruto was dancing around like a fairy while Haruhi laughed and followed him to the only place Naruto truly loved the place where people treated him like a person.

**I hope you guys like the new chapter. I would like to thank everyone who has put me on their alerts. It is very hearting to know people like my story. Also I would like to thank Vash3055, thebigmoose, Pokannicknow, lindon2, and Steve Vader for reviewing my story and offering advice as to help my writing. **

**As to thebigmoose's question, No Naruto will not get with mom (Also shudders) and if I bring in another Kyuubi. It won't be romantically. Everything else I think I'll keep hush hush for now. **

**Lastly I would like to thank my friend BattyDragon33 for helping me edit my work and helping me bounce ideas around. You're a big help.**


	4. Chapter 4

Haruhi was, for lack of a better word, bored beyond belief.

Naruto had left for breakfast, while Haruhi decided to get some more sleep. That was over four hours ago. It was now a little past nine thirty and there was not one thing to do within Naruto's apartment. Haruhi had guessed correctly when she assumed Naruto was out all day; if he stayed indoors, the blond would have gone crazy from boredom.

Haruhi then decided to past the time by thinking over the council meeting, which had ended rather abruptly. Upon the fox's announcement of her son's identity, the counsel erupted. She just sat there while people started yelling; it was quite amusing for her, really.

Haruhi remembered how several of the councilors pulled law books from somewhere, probably out of their asses and scrutinized each page for any loopholes they could use. Luckily, the laws concerning the formation of clans were very strict on both the forming and the dissolving of any given clan. The laws were old and written at a time when Konoha needed clans and when infighting was much more common, so they were made to last.

Haruhi obviously made some enemies yesterday, but surprisingly, she also made some allies. Makoto was the first, since they knew each other from back when Minato was alive. They also shared a common disliking of the council and seeing as how Naruto and Sasuke were on a team together, both mothers figured they would be seeing more of each other.

Makoto would have extended the same courtesy to Haruno Tsuruya, if she weren't one of the people discreetly, or at least trying to and failing miserably flipping through a book. Haruhi didn't like the woman and Makoto wouldn't want to get in the way of that anger.

Inuzuka Tsume was the second, after she joined Makoto and Haruhi in the back. The current head of the Dog Clan found the whole thing amusing, much like Haruhi. The Inuzuka bloodline limit gave them a bond with dogs that no one outside the clan could ever have. This had also led the clan to be fairly pack oriented, 'fairly' being a gross understatement. Tsume was the alpha female of such a clan and what she said was law within it.

Haruhi remained civil with Tsume, remembering that the Inuzuka were the only people that protected Naruto for other reason than self-preservation or the means for a new weapon. The fact that the Inuzuka didn't help him later on was still in the back of her mind though.

The three women were all single mothers and all had a somewhat similar idea of fun. Makoto, Haruhi and Tsume got along rather well. Tsume also happened to know how to handle council meeting better than either Haruhi or Makoto, so Tsume's help was welcomed with open arms well, to a point anyways.

Eventually, Haruhi asked why the Inuzuka protected Naruto when everyone else didn't, or had ulterior motives. To which Tsume herself answered, 'I don't want a newborn's blood on my clan's hands.'

It was short and simple, but it was enough to satisfy Haruhi, even though it was less about protecting Naruto than Haruhi had hoped. The conversation also wandered over to the subject of their children, which turned rather short. That line of talk ended when Makoto and Tsume noticed that they were making Haruhi rather uncomfortable.

After all, she had only spent a couple hours to raise and get to know her child, who was still a newborn the last time she saw him. Unlike her, both of them hadn't missed out on raising their children from birth to present day.

'…_No changing diapers, no giving bubble baths, no hearing __him say 'Momma' or 'Daddy' for the first time__.' _Haruhi's mind wondered on all the things she missed out on.

Shaking her head to clear it of such troublesome thoughts, Haruhi made a note to get Sarutobi something nice for all the trouble she had caused. The Hokage's help in the matter was not as appreciated amongst the rest of the council, and he had been yelled at for a near two hours. Haruhi didn't understand why the old man let them yell at him, but she could tell he was tuning most of what they were saying out. The fox did notice the Hyuuga head remained quiet for the rest of the meeting and just sat at his seat.

The idea of taking Naruto off Team Seven was forgotten completely as the new clan became topic number one. Haruhi, like Sarutobi, tuned the yelling out and focused more on the conversation with Tsume and Makoto. Mostly their conversation stayed along the lines of the mess Haruhi made.

In total, the whole meeting took about three hours, two of which were after Haruhi's announcement. Nothing else was finished and the meeting was, for the most part, a complete waste of time.

Though she tried, Haruhi wasn't able to get the Haruno woman to herself. It grated on Haruhi that the woman who should be looking out for the orphans of the village denied Naruto a family. Haruhi also realized that yelling and threatening the mother of one of her son teammates was probably not the best idea.

Sarutobi wasn't happy with Tsuruya either, but at the moment he had over half the council breathing down his neck about helping the 'Monster' get a clan, one that held Minato as one of the founding members no less.

After the council realized that they couldn't stop Haruhi from forming a clan and that Sarutobi was not budging an inch over the subject, they gave up and left, grumbling and throwing accusations. Not one of them threatened Haruhi openly in front of the Hokage though.

The Hokage also made sure that the members of the council had understood to keep Haruhi a secret till she states otherwise.

Haruhi had also invited Tsume and Makoto over for an open house some time this week. Both agreed, and a time and date was settled. It gave Haruhi ample time to get situated first.

Haruhi then met Sarutobi in his office a little later. Haruhi removed Minato's jacket and placed it in his chest like it was glass. She asked for him to have someone take it to her new compound.

Sarutobi agreed. He asked about Minato's Haiti-ate. Haruhi stated that she wanted to keep something of his for the moment and that the jacket would cause too much of a stir in and out of the village. His haiti-ate is a little less noticeable by the general public.

Sarutobi gave Haruhi a bank account and the address to her compound, both of which he had planned to give to Naruto as well. The account was for Minato's savings, something Haruhi had never seen. Being Hokage made everything almost free for Minato and the same was carried over to the Hokage's wife. There really was no need for the money Minato earned.

When Haruhi got to see what was in the bank though, she nearly had a heart attack. The Kyuubi clan had treasure, of gold and valuable items. Most of it was stuff they had collected over the centuries, but this was a ridiculously large number of cold hard cash. Haruhi was left wondering if Minato ever spent any money he had received throughout his life.

Haruhi went back to Naruto's apartment after that and waited for her son. The rest of the day was consumed at Ichiraku's, celebrating. Teuchi nearly died from laughter at hearing what the council did after Haruhi claimed Naruto as her son. Ayame somehow seemed to be even more attached to Naruto, and she was apparently trying her hardest to make Naruto 400 pounds heavier with all the ramen she was shoving at him. It seemed to Haruhi that the knowledge of Naruto almost becoming her little brother in both name and reality made an impact on the girl. Haruhi also could have sworn up and down that she heard Ayame growl at her when the fox reached over to pat Naruto on the head.

That was the end of yesterday and today was much less exciting. There were things Haruhi knew she needed to do, but she was trying to put them off as long as possible. The widow had put Naruto ahead of everything. Haruhi didn't give a lot of thought about anything other than Naruto, and she had achieved most of her objectives in two days.

The fox hadn't planned on meeting the council at all; it never even crossed her mind. She had wanted to kill them for what they did to Naruto, but actually going to a meeting and forming a clan in two days after 12 years of not even having a body was not on the list.

Haruhi definitely had her moments, where she almost broke down; even as a Kyuubi she was not some all-powerful emotionless demon. Haruhi was very 'human' one would say. Laughing, crying, falling in love, it was all normal for a Kyuubi. The stories and legends had truth to them yes, however most were overly exaggerated and baseless claims.

"Minato," Haruhi whispered. She was thinking over her options… stay here and wait for Naruto before heading to the compound, or go now to pay her respects to her late husband. The decision wasn't hard, but the outcome might be. Getting up Haruhi cleaned herself up and left for the memorial stone.

Walking through the village was rather peaceful. The people of the village went about their business. Haruhi could even pick out a few nins walking around doing whatever they did on an off day. Children held onto their mother and fathers smiling happily.

One child had made eye contact with Haruhi. The child was a dark haired boy, no older than 5. He gave her a confused look and Haruhi wondered if she had something on her face. The boy turned to his mother, pointing at Haruhi and started to say something. Haruhi, being curious gathered a small amount of chakra in her ears listen in on the conversation.

"Mommy that lady over there, she's pretty. I never saw her before."

Looking at Haruhi, then turning back to her child, "She is a ninja honey. It's their job not to be seen. Now come on. Help me pick out dinner." The woman looked up at Haruhi and smiled. Grabbing her son's hand, the woman stated walking off and just before the two disappeared into the crowed.

The child smiled and waved at Haruhi. Haruhi waved back mouthing goodbye.

When the two were completely out of sight, Haruhi went on her way. That could have been her and Naruto once upon a time. Shaking her head to clear her thoughts, Haruhi noticed a flower store at the far end of the market district.

"Maybe I should get flowers." She could smell the flowers even through all the bodies around her.

The flower shop had flowers adorning the entrance, each well kept and arranged in a way that no flower out-shined the others. "I should start a flower garden too." The fox said aloud to her self.

Walking into the shop, Haruhi was bombarded with the smell of dozens of different flowers. She even noticed some rare flowers that grew in different parts of the world, far away from the land of fire.

"Hello, welcome to my families flower shop, how may I help you?" A platinum blond girl about twelve sat at the counter near the back. She had blue eyes and a purple top. Her mid section was wrapped in bandages, of all things.

"Hello, I'm looking for something I can give my husband." Haruhi greeted walking up to the girl. The blond girl was as old as Naruto and a Haiti-ate wrapped around her waist was revealed when the blond stood.

"I rarely get wives buying flowers for their husbands. What's the occasion?" The girl was polite and smiled at Haruhi.

Haruhi decided she like the girl, but the question still made her frown. "He's…he passed away. I'm going to visit his grave."

The flower girl's smile disappeared. "I'm sorry. May I ask how he died?"

"He died during my…the kyuubi attack." Haruhi caught herself before she mentioned brother.

"I see… I also lost family, or at least I've been told. Thankfully the Fourth killed that thing before it reached the village. My name's Ino by the way." Ino bowed to Haruhi. The girl motioned for Haruhi to followed as she moved toward a section of small flowers.

"My name is Haruhi." Ino looked back and smiled at Haruhi before turning to pick some flowers.

Haruhi watched as the blond nin gathered some small flowers for the outer ring of the bouquet. This girl seemed to know what she was doing, so Haruhi stood back and let Ino work her magic.

"Shouldn't you be training with your team right now?" The question was bugging her ever since she saw Ino's haiti-ate. Why was this girl here while Naruto was training?

Ino stopped what she was doing. Looking over her shoulder, "I'm already done for today." Going back to the bouquet, "I swear my team is so lazy. Asuma-sensei does nothing but play Go with Shikamaru, and Chouji just eats." Ino was progressively getting louder. "I am a ninja, not a dog walker for crying out loud. Was it like this when you were a genin?"

Haruhi was surprised by the question. "I'm not a ninja."

Ino was done with the first part of the bouquet and turned completely around. "But you have a Haiti-ate."

Haruhi gave Ino a confused look for a second. It didn't take long to figure out what she was talking about though. Haruhi reached up and lightly touched the metal around her neck.

"This was my husband's. I don't have a lot of his things, so I keep this close." Other than a few pictures and a Jacket, this was all she had that was of Minato's personal affects.

Ino realized her mistake and quickly made up for it by making and 'ah' noise. "That is so romantic. I would want my husband to wear my haiti-ate. Could you describe him for me? It will help with the flowers."

Haruhi forced a smile. It may have been twelve years to everyone else, but to Haruhi it was like yesterday. Haruhi began to describe Minato's personality as Ino walked around, grabbing certain flowers based on what Haruhi said. Ino nearly tripped when Haruhi mentioned they fell in love the first night they met.

It took maybe an hour to get the bouquet done. The end result was beautiful and Haruhi was very impressed with Ino's flower arrangement skills. The fox was going to leave a big tip for Ino as she was being rung up at the counter. Haruhi looked back at the girl. _'She's about the right age….'_

"Excuse me, but do you know Uzumaki Naruto?"

Ino looked up with a confused look. "Why do you want to know? Did he do something to you?" Whenever someone ask anything about Naruto, it was usually bad.

Haruhi shook her head. "No, why? Is he a bad kid?"

"Yes…no…Now that I think about it I don't really know." Ino took a second to think over everything she knew about Naruto, and she had to admit, it wasn't much. "I really don't talk to him much and when I was younger, I was told to stay away from him like everyone else. He does prank a lot of people, but nothing too serious; some are even really funny."

Haruhi smiled, "I see, and is there anything else." _'They told their children to stay away from Naruto.'_

"Well, he's loud and he is always goofing off. Don't even get me started on his ninja skills. He couldn't hit the broad side of a barn with a kunai." Ino's face took a dark turn, "And he stole Sasuke-kun's first kiss."

"HE WHAT?!?"

"He stole Sasuke-kun's first kiss. My Sasuke-kun has to live the rest of his life knowing his first kiss was from Naruto-baka. He could have had a beautiful genin like me, but noooo…." Ino went on.

Haruhi went pale. _'How can he build a clan when he likes __boys__? But he was always chasing after that pink haired girl. Is that possibly a cover-up?' _"Are you sure he kissed the Uchiha boy? It wasn't an accident or something?"

"Yes…no…it was an accident. Inuzuka Kiba (*I thought Shikamaru?) pushed Naruto into Sasuke. Now that I think about it, maybe we shouldn't have beaten him so badly for that. It wasn't his fault." Ino sighed.

Haruhi sighed also, though this one of relief, _'Thank Kami he isn't…wait __what__?'_ "You've beaten him?"

"Yah, me and a group of girls beat him up for kissing Sasuke-kun. I really should apologize for that." Ino stated as if it were obvious.

Haruhi was about to say something to Ino about what she thought about the girl's actions, when….

"Angel, you can go if you want. I got the shop under…" The words died as Haruhi's red eyes met Yamanaka Inoichi's blue eyes.

Inoichi was one of the council members, and if Haruhi remembered right, he was part of the group that yelled at Sarutobi for helping Haruhi.

The atmosphere in the room took a turn for the worst. Ino felt it and gulped. Inoichi looked at Haruhi, then at the bouquet in her hand, and back to Haruhi. "I hope you got everything you needed, _Haruhi-san_." Ino stared at her father. It was rare that he ever took that tone with anyone.

"Yes, your daughter has been very helpful." Haruhi said with as much ice in her tone. Haruhi quickly guessed that they were related. With the fact that he called her 'Angel' and that they looked almost exactly the same, it was as decent a guess as any.

"Are the flowers for your husband?" His tone was just as frosty as before.

"Yes… I've been in a coma for 12 years. I figured it would be a good idea to see him." Haruhi narrowed her eyes. The tension was only getting worse. Ino's jaw hung open at the new peace of information.

"Please give my respects. He was a great man; a man that didn't resort to tricks." Inoichi sent his first barb.

"He was a great man. He sacrificed himself for a village that treats his son like dirt." The Kyuubi countered.

Ino had no idea who they were talking about. She couldn't think of anyone who was treated that badly. This was great gossip material though, and Ino wanted to know rather badly.

"And I take it we have your word on that." Inoichi crossed his arms.

"I have the documents, pictures, and people to back up my claim. Surely you don't think the Hokage would lie on something like this." Haruhi stated.

"He lied twice to the council for you. What's to say he isn't doing it again?"

Inoichi was clearly taking it more personally than he should. The truth of the matter was that the Ino-Shika-Cho team felt betrayed by the Hokage's efforts to keep three of some of the most loyal ninja of Konoha in the dark. It was a matter of trust, and they, probably rightly felt that the Old Man simply didn't trust them enough for something like this.

"Tell me Yamanaka-san, did you know someone tried to adopt Naruto?" A gasp was heard coming from Ino. Inoichi looked over at his daughter and cursed under his breath. Ino wasn't supposed to hear this. He had completely forgotten that his daughter was in the room; he got too wrapped up in this argument.

As for Ino, she was shocked at the mention of Naruto. Now it made sense as to why she asked about Naruto. In her mind, Ino quickly fitted all the pieces together; Haruhi had just come out of her coma and wanted to know about her son. Something happened with the council, something that really upset her father.

Ino gulped at the memory of what she said about Naruto and paled when she recalled herself saying that she beat Naruto up, to his mother no less. The question of who the father was though remained unanswered.

Haruhi ignored everything and continued, trying to keep her anger under control. "He wasn't just some merchant that would take Naruto away from the village, and it wasn't anyone from a clan. The man who wanted to adopt my boy was a ramen chef. You know what, you of the council told him? That Naruto was too dangerous to adopt. Tell me, what possible danger is there for a boy to be given a home and a family that truly cared for him?"

"No, you wouldn't have helped me if Naruto were part of the deal. Sarutobi and I lied to get what we needed to help Naruto. Naruto is an innocent 12 year old, who is my son. I did what I had to, for him. Yamanaka-san, what would you do in my place? What would you do for your daughter?"

Inoichi was quiet. He wanted to argue against the fact, but the words wouldn't form. He couldn't argue the fact that he would kill for his daughter.

Haruhi, seeing that the argument was done, turned and left.

Ino watched her go and when Haruhi was out of sight, she turned to her father. "Dad?" Ino was worried; her father didn't answer, and his eyes were glazed.

Inoichi was doing something that he had never done before, something that hardly anyone had ever done. He was putting Ino in Naruto's place with every memory he had of the blond boy. What he saw was not pleasant.

Being on the council allowed the man to information of all the things Naruto had been put through… at least on paper. One incident that left Naruto in the hospital for a week came to mind, and with the knowledge that Naruto had enhanced healing, only made it worse.

"Daddy, are you okay?" Ino shook her dad a little and he snapped back to reality. Looking down at Ino, he felt sick.

"Yes Angel, I'm fine." Smiling at Ino to reassure her. Inoichi's smile disappeared when he remembered the Hokage's orders. "Angel, before you go. I want you to promise not to talk about Haruhi-san to anyone."

Ino was disappointed by this turn of event. Ino had just gotten her hands on some real gossip and now she wasn't going to be able to share it.

"Why dad?"

Inoichi didn't want to go farther into the subject, but Ino had already learned too much. "Haruhi and Naruto have a lot of enemies who would try and kill them, even if they are in Konoha. We can't let that happen, so we need to keep it a secret for now."

Needless to say, Ino was surprised that anyone would want to kill Naruto. He was a second rate ninja as far as Ino knew. And though Ino may not like Naruto that much, she didn't want him to die either. Nodding in conformation, she gave her reply, "Okay dad."

"That's my girl. Now, you're free for the rest of the day." Inoichi watched Ino walk away and turned to the door. The blond man needed to think things through for a little bit.

Haruhi had a bad taste in her mouth from the conversation she just had with Yamanaka. However, blowing up in front of a 12 year old would have been bad. Haruhi knew full well what could happen to a jonin if she didn't hold back; she didn't want to see what would happen to a genin.

Haruhi was walking through woods now. Finding the memorial stone wasn't even the least bit hard. The stone was one of the most important parts of Konoha's historical landmarks after all. It was second only to the Hokage monument, really. The stone itself was a large rock that held all the names of every single ninja that had died in service to Konoha. Not everyone's body could be retrieved for burial, and being a ninja village, there were plenty of deaths. When names were worn off from weathering over time, new names are added in their place.

Minato took Haruhi to see it once.

That day wasn't special, nor was it the most memorable. Minato just paid his respects to some old friends and explained what the stone was. Haruhi didn't know anyone who had their name placed on the stone at the time, so it wasn't that important to her. This time was different.

Haruhi could see the stone in the distance, along with about three people. All of them were deathly silent. As Haruhi walked up, one of the three people looked over at her and with a solemn look, nodded. The man didn't say a word.

They must have been there a while, because the same man put his hands on the shoulders of his compatriots, motioning to Haruhi. They nodded and shortly left, leaving Haruhi alone, for which Haruhi was extremely grateful.

Haruhi bent down in front of the stone and began scanning for Minato's name. She started on the side with relatively new names carved into it, and slowly worked her way back to the more worn down names. It took about 15 minutes before she found a name she recognized.

It wasn't Minato's, but the name was still important for Haruhi.

Haruhi traced Rin's name with her finger and recalled some of the memories she had of the girl she had considered 'like a daughter'. Some tears welled up in her eyes. Rin was always smiling and laughing at jokes Haruhi would share with the girl. Rin was also the one who help Haruhi get over the grief from her slaughtered family.

Minato had tried to comfort Haruhi, but being Hokage took up much of his time. Rin, bless her heart, had gone out of her way to help Haruhi. This was the reason Haruhi became so attached to her.

"I wish you were here to help me this time too." Haruhi whispered to herself.

Haruhi moved on and found Minato's name not too far away. That wasn't such a surprise, considering they died on the same day. Haruhi placed her hand over the faded carving that was Minato's name.

"I'm not afraid to say… that I screwed up. I'm sorry for not telling you about my brother sooner. You always had a way of making things seem all right, making them turn out all right…. Maybe you could have thought of a way to stop him without punishing our son, if I had given you more time." Lowering her head, "We really messed up Minato. Our son, our little boy, Naruto has had a horrible life and…I…I don't know how to make it up to him. How am I supposed to make up for 12 years of neglect and abuse?" Tears dropped onto the ground.

Haruhi growled, "This is my _brother's_ fault. The death of both my families is his fault!" Clenching her teeth, "I'm going to make him suffer like…"

Haruhi's rant was cut short when she remembered exactly where her brother was at the moment, and that any attempted to get him would hurt Naruto. Her voice once again dropping to a sorrowful one, "…I can't even get the satisfaction of revenge." That thought brought a sad smile to her face.

"I've been busy since I came back. Thanks to Sarutobi, Naruto has a compound and is legally the heir of the Uzumaki clan. I'll have to leave and rebuild the Kyuubi clan, but for now I'm going to stay. Naruto is all I have right now and I'm not going to lose him too."

Wiping away tears. "Seems all I've done for the past two days is cry and plot murder."

Placing the bouquet of flowers down, Haruhi stood, her eyes never leaving the names of the two people she cared about. "Please look after Naruto, both of you."

Haruhi hated cemeteries and funerals. Places like this are usually were meant for people to remember times past, with ones long gone. Haruhi believed that the past is important, but as long as you have a future, there is no need to look back. The future she was looking to now involved Naruto, and regretfully Minato wasn't there.

Turning to leave, she suddenly looking back, "Oh, I almost forgot. Yamanaka-san pays his respects." Haruhi waited a bit, as if to see if she would get some reply. After some time passed, Haruhi left, not taking a second look back.

Walking back seemed less somehow.

The streets were less crowded. Looking into one of the food stand, Haruhi could see that it was full of customers. Apparently, it seems everyone was getting lunch. Haruhi thought about getting food for her-self. At first she was going to skip lunch and go home. Naruto should be back anytime now. However her stomach gurgled, demanding rather loudly for food.

Haruhi looked for the closest restaurant and walked in without looking at the name. Taking a stool at the counter, she looked up at her choices of food. Apparently she had walked into a dango shop because almost everything on the menu either was or had dango with the meal.

"What will it be lady?" A man with a graveled voice asks the fox.

Haruhi looked over the menu again, and seeing as nothing really stood out, she ordered the special. The man wrote the request down and headed to the back. Haruhi looked around and noticed some people looking her way, but no one she really remembered.

Haruhi could tell none of the people held anything other than curiosity towards her. After all, it's pretty common knowledge that a new person to the village would always be watched by resident ninjas. You never know when a nin from another village is trying to sneak into Konoha, and it is an unwritten rule that all ninjas should watch for such things.

Haruhi was mostly left alone, except for one man who was trying to get a date. One look from Haruhi's red eyes though and he quickly got the hint that she wasn't interested. Slowly, the feeling of being watched died, and only the most devoted nins kept watching her out of the corner of their eyes. Haruhi did feel one pair of eyes furiously watching her. The feeling had come when she heard someone come into the Dango stand. Staring at her meal as she ate, Haruhi was hoping the person would write her off soon, but the feeling of being watched was always there.

Haruhi paid for her meal and left without looking at the pair of eyes that had been staring at her. Thinking the feeling would disappear when she left, Haruhi started to walk to Naruto's apartment, but the feeling didn't go away and Haruhi soon found herself being followed.

Teuchi's warning and the anger of the counsel ran through her head. Doing a quick check at her chakra reserves, Haruhi wasn't happy. The red eyes narrowed as the information of having mid-chunin chakra levels entered her head. Judging from how much trouble Haruhi was having with trying to keep track of her stalker without giving away the fact that she knew she was being followed, her stalker had to be at least a jonin, at least, with the amount of skill Haruhi sensed.

The fox went through several plans, either to fight or lose the person following her. Most of the ideas were too reckless and would get an innocent person hurt out in the streets, and the fact that the person watching her was probably a Konoha nin really didn't help. Haruhi would lose at a 'her-word vs. 'whoever-is-following-her'-word' unless Sarutobi got involved. She needed to hit hard and fast, knocking her opponent out before the person could react. Haruhi thought about losing the person again, but she would have to deal with this eventually anyways.

Taking an alley that looked reasonably vacant, Haruhi just took some more random turns here and there. If the person following her didn't know Haruhi knew he/ she was there, then they knew it right then. A purple haired, browned eyed woman turned down the alleyway Haruhi took and found no one there.

The women looked around for her lost prey, unable to see anything. She was just about to run to the far end in hopes of finding Haruhi, but that idea was cut short when a chakra signature spiked above her.

The former predator, now prey, moved before her brain even registered the danger. Such a reflex is only attainable from years of being in danger. Twisting her body and lunging out of the way, she was able to see Haruhi slam her fist, completely consumed in fire, into the ground where she was standing.

Kicking up a cloud of dust from the attack, Haruhi waited for her opponent to move by following her charka signature. Standing and performing the same set of seals she had performed earlier, the dust started glowing orange. Haruhi's right arm ignited in a firestorm. "I suggest that you either leave or explain yourself." The dust was clearing and the two women got a good look at each other.

"Ka-chan?" The word was barely above a whisper, and if Haruhi weren't on high alert, she would have missed it. Haruhi looked the women over and unlike so many others, she found that she actually recognized her.

"Anko…is that you?" Haruhi asked lowering her chakra to the point the fire around her arm disappeared.

Anko took a step forward and lightly touched Haruhi's face with outstretched hands.

"You can't be real. My family died that night." Anko was in a state of disbelief looking at Haruhi. Here was the woman that took her in and helped her find people that wanted to be around her, who she wouldn't feel like shit around, and who hadn't cared that she was Orochimaru's student…

Haruhi reached up and grabbed Anko's hands, "I'm very real Anko; and my face isn't meant to be played with. It's been 12 years, from my understanding. How have you been?" Haruhi was doing her best to stay calm. One of them had to and with Anko the way she is right now, Haruhi was the designated driver.

Anko was speechless. _'It really is Ka-chan.'_ Anko wrapped her arms around Haruhi. Bringing her into a hug so tight that, even Haruhi was having trouble breathing. "It's you… it really is you. I thought you were dead." Anko started crying. Haruhi managed to wriggle into a more comfortable position and returned the hug.

They held each other for a few minutes, just taking comfort in each other's arms. Haruhi felt better. After going to the memorial stone she had felt off somehow, like something was missing, but now after finding Anko, that feeling was gone.

Anko had found a family with the demon fox but after Haruhi's supposed death, Anko was left alone once again. Kakashi went his own way on dealing with the grief of losing his entire team, leaving Anko to her own devices.

Anko collected herself and was about to go into a line of questioning when Haruhi cut her off. "Anko I'm waiting for someone and I'll be more than happy to talk with you at his apartment. It's also dangerous to answer your questions right now. Is that ok?" Anko wanted to ask anyway, but she nodded. Haruhi smiled and motioned Anko to follow.

They arrived at Naruto's apartment shortly after heading out from their meeting spot. They had moved faster than Haruhi had planned at first, but catching up with each other was driving them to pick up the pace.

Upon arriving, Anko looked around. She saw the hateful writings on the wall and how the apartment was empty. The snake charmer processed the information and came to some conclusions. Not all of them were correct, like wanting to talk with the Kyuubi inside Naruto, but knowing the Kyuubi vessel lived in the building was dead on.

Haruhi closed the door behind Anko and check to make sure no one was listening in. "Honey, are you home?" No answer was the reply. Turning to Anko, the fox could see that Anko was biting her lip, waiting impatiently for Haruhi to give the ok. "I take it I have some things to answer for?"

Anko took that as the signal to start asking, which she did without hesitation. "I thought you were dead; where have you been? Why didn't you tell me you were leaving? Where is…"

"Slow down Anko, I can only answer one question at a time." Haruhi cut Anko off. Anko had asked all that at light speed. The fox was more than happy to see Anko, but she wasn't that excited.

Anko realized what she had done and took a deep breath. The purple haired woman was use to being rash, but only in a fight. Thinking over what would be the most important question to ask, she went with, "What happen during the attack? I was told you died."

Haruhi sighed; if only Anko had known she gave birth to Naruto…. The brown-eyed women would most likely have fought the entire council to the death to take care of Naruto, but Sarutobi did a fine job at keeping Naruto a secret from everyone who would have been able to take care of him. Not that there were that many. "Technically, I did die…I think."

Sitting on the bed and collecting her thoughts, she said, "That night, I had used all of my Chakra, or so I had thought. When someone uses all their chakra they die. I certainly thought I was going to die, but 12 years later, here I am. I have no memory of the 12 years I wasn't…'alive', I guess would be the word. Part of my chakra must have made it through that night. Not enough to hold my body together, but enough that I would survive. It's hard to explain and I don't understand it myself really."

Anko wasn't sure if she should keep asking, but the look Haruhi had on her face suggested that she had been thinking over that very question herself and hadn't truly found an answer. Moving on, Anko asked, "So you don't have any memories of the past 12 years, none at all?"

"Unfortunately, no. I was saying goodbye to Minato-kun and then I was in the woods in fox form." Haruhi had a sad look on her face. "I would have been here if I knew Minato was going to make such a stupid decision, sacrificing him-self."

"So that part was true. What about the baby, did she survive?" Anko had a hopeful look on her face. She was excited all through the pregnancy and did her best to help. When she heard that even the baby had died, Anko was crushed.

She also had money on the baby being a girl.

Haruhi finally brought a genuine smile to bear. "Yes, he survived and even after everything he has been through, he has accepted me. When I heard everything he has been put through… I thought that he would hate me."

Anko smiled as well at the news. That was replaced with a frown. "Why didn't the Hokage tell me? I would have taken care of the kid."

"I know Anko, but the Hokage had done things in the best interest of my son. Even though in the end it only hurt him. I can't even tell when my son gives me a genuine smile or one of his fake ones."

Haruhi looked down at her feet. It still hurts to see him smile at people who called him names and shunned him, then turn around and give his mother the same exact smile, when he is laughing and joking with her.

"So, he knows about you?" asked Anko, who was sitting crossed legged on the floor.

"I met him two days ago. It was a complete accident; I was on my way to the tower after waking up when I ran into his genin team on the roof of the academy. I'll tell you, it was a shock to see my 12-year old son. In my head, I gave birth to him no more than a week ago."

"Who is he?" This was the most important question. If Anko had passed him even once without knowing it, she would feel worse than anytime else in her life.

As if on command the door opened, along with a familiar voice, "Are there demon cats?

Because I think I met one. That stupid cat scratched me right across the face; but the owner…who's she?" the question being directed toward the new stranger in his apartment.

Naruto was standing just inside the room, looking ragged. His clothes had slash marks that resembles cat scratches, and his face was matted with dirt. At this point though, Naruto was looking at Anko with a questioning look. The blond had never seen the brown-eyed women in his life. That made sense, considering Anko only left Area 44 for food and missions, and no one went to Area 44.

Anko just stared at the boy with wide eyes. _'He looks just like Minato.'_ She could see some things Haruhi shared with Naruto, like the whisker marks, but he was clearly his father's child when it came to looks.

Haruhi smiled at her son. It amazed her how he could make her smile just by being in the same room. "Why yes, the Nibi is the two-tailed cat. I have never met her, but I hear she is really nice." Motioning to the other women, "Also, this is Anko… the closest thing I have to a daughter."

Naruto looked Anko up and down, a trickle of blood started to come out of his nose. Naruto quickly turned around blushing, "What the hell is she wearing?!" he yelled rather loudly.

That response took both women aback and both looked at how Anko was dressed. Anko didn't find anything wrong. Haruhi, on the other hand, was in agreement with Naruto.

"What the hell are you wearing?!" Haruhi was as loud as Naruto.

Anko looked herself over again, "What, I don't see anything wrong." Anko was wearing a white trench coat and a small brown mini skirt. That was the only thing covering her privates. Underneath both articles of clothing was a see through wire mesh shirt and leggings. Anko also had metal shin guards, but that wasn't really important at the moment.

Haruhi hadn't paid Anko's clothes any attention before now. The fox had lost too much and was more than happy just to see Anko alive and well. However, this was too alive and too well.

"What do you mean 'what is wrong'!? You're practically wearing nothing! At least my son has the decency to look away."

Anko had grown, a lot, and was clearly one of the more endowed women Haruhi had ever seen. Being a ninja had also meant her body was constantly under physical exertion, meaning men drooled over pictures of her.

Anko smiled, she always enjoyed people reaction to her choice of clothes. "First, it's a 'ninja tactic'." Pointing at her breasts, "These babies have saved my life more times than you can count. It helps when you wear something revealing and pretend you're into bondage."

Walking over to Naruto and grabbing him by the shoulders and turned him so they were both facing Haruhi. "Secondly, how am I going to teach my otouto how not to fall into such a trap by enemy nins if I don't play the part." Spinning Naruto on the spot, Anko grabbed the back of Naruto's head and slammed his face right between her breasts. Naruto struggled, mostly for air, but Anko had a firm grip on his head, so Naruto wasn't going anywhere.

Haruhi, understandably, was stunned by Anko's action and didn't move for a few seconds as her brain registered exactly what just happened. When it did click, Haruhi lunged for Naruto in her attempt to protect her baby. Anko took evasive maneuvers and it quickly became a game of keep away.

It didn't take long for Haruhi to grab one of the boy's arms though and once she did, she pulled. From the force of the pull, Naruto fell lose and was nearly free, when Anko grabbed a hold of the other arm and the game changed to tug-o-war.

"Anko, let go! He isn't ready for that stuff!" Haruhi called out. The mother was still pulling as hard she can.

"This is for his own good, ka-chan! The sooner he learns to ignore these types of weapons, the better at being a ninja he'll be!" Anko called back. The would-be big sister pulled as hard as she could.

Naruto's head was rolling back a forth from being the bone between the dogs wanting a bigger piece. Fortunately, Naruto was blissfully unconscious at that very moment. Whether it was from being too embarrassed or from the lack of oxygen within Anko's canyon would be something he would never remember.

It took about 15 minutes of wrestling Naruto from each other before they noticed the blond was out like a light. How he wasn't torn to pieces is another mystery that will never be answered, even if accounting for his healing factor. With that, both women agreed fun time was over and placed Naruto on his bed to get some rest. Haruhi sat on the floor against the far wall from Naruto, while Anko leaned against the wall near Naruto's bed and watched as he lay there.

"How could I have never seen him before?" Turning to Haruhi, "He's the boy the demon is in?"

"Yes, he is…and I regret ever agreeing with Minato to make him that way. You saw the writing on the wall. His life was…is worse than anything I have ever seen." Haruhi looked away from Anko trying to avoid eye contact.

Anko looked back at Naruto, Sighing. "I should have been there. I should have taken care of the gaki."

"You were told he died. I don't blame you for not knowing he was even alive. If you did know, I don't doubt that you would have taken care of him. I'm surprised that Kashi-kun didn't tell you though."

Anko's head snapped back and she gave Haruhi a hard stare. "Kakashi knew about Naruto?"

Haruhi nodded, "Being in the ANBU, he was assigned to watch over Naruto on occasion. I think he figured it out after taking one look at my boy."

Hissing could be heard from Anko's jacket and Haruhi could have sworn she saw a tongue flicker from her coat sleeve. The fox's thoughts were answered when two snakes from Anko's jacket wrapped around her neck.

"I'm going to tie him to a tree by his balls and hang him over a pit of poisonous snakes. Ones that kill you slowly and painfully, for not telling me."

Haruhi watched Anko and marveled at how Anko grew up. The snake charmer was beautiful and completely secure in her thought that the men of the world desired her. Rin would most likely have had a heart attack at the way Anko smothered Naruto. Haruhi giggled at the thought.

"Naruto and I were going to move into our clan compound before you tried to kill him. I have…had now, a surprise for you. Come with us."

Anko anger subsided as Haruhi spoke to her. Anko didn't like surprises. In the ninja world a surprise could get you killed. Haruhi had taken good care of her ever since her family abandoned her. It had only been eight months from when Haruhi found Anko crying in the woods to the attack, but that was the happiest time of Anko's life.

"Sure, I'll need to know where to go when I want to see you from now on."

"Uhhh…what happened?" Naruto was finally waking from his forced slumber.

"You need better training if you couldn't handle something other men would kill to have a chance at." Anko answered with a smirk.

Naruto looked over at the scantily dressed woman. At first he had a hard time recognizing her; however it didn't take long for him to remember what happened. Jumping up and pulling a kunai out from his pouch, Naruto took his fighting stance. "Stay away from me you crazy!"

Anko smiled at all the things that ran through her head at that very moment. Every single one of the thoughts would just proven the crazy accusation to be true. "Listen gaki, I'm giving you the rest of the day off from my fun. You and I are going to see a lot more of each other anyways, and I can always get you later."

Naruto paled upon hearing that they were going to be seeing each other more often. The crazy lady nearly killed him this time, what will happen the next time? "Haruhi-chan, who is this lady… and why is she going to be around even more?!"

Haruhi sighed; she could already see where their relationship was going to go. Arguing and playing pranks on each other everyday was going to be normal. "Like I said before, Anko is like my daughter to me and both of you share a lot in common. I want her to be around more often. She'll be able to provide help to me and right now, I need help."

Anko's smile grew at hearing she was needed by someone she truly cared for. "So gaki, get your things gathered so we can head to your compound."

Naruto wasn't too sure about Anko just yet. The blond kept one eye on Anko as he moved his bed. Haruhi watched as Naruto took the kunai and inserted it into a small hole. Tilting the kunai down, the board lifted. Naruto finally took his eyes of Anko to see what he was grabbing. Anko did think about grabbing him again, but thought better.

From out of the hole Naruto pulled out a case that was usually used to hold kunai. Opening the box to see if everything was there, the girls got to see what was inside. It wasn't much. There were some goggles and about three pictures. There were some other nick-knacks, and a necklace seeming to be the only thing that really stood out to Haruhi.

"Is that Iruka?" Anko asked, going to grabbing one of the pictures. Naruto quickly swatted her hand away from his valuables.

Grabbing the picture himself Naruto held it up so Anko could see, "Yah, that's Iruka-sensei. He's the coolest teacher." The picture had Naruto and Iruka smiling like idiots. They were covered in mud from head to toe. "That day I prank him by throwing balloons filled with mud at him. He performed a jutsu that shot the mud back. We spent the entire day throwing mud at each other… it was fun."

Naruto was smiling as he recalled at the picture that held fond memories. Something he had very few of. Anko made a note to talk with Iruka.

Haruhi saw the other two pictures. One had Naruto wearing the Hokage hat while Sarutobi smiled in the background. The other was of Ayame and Teuchi on either side of Naruto stuffing his face with ramen. Teuchi's arm stretched out behind the camera, clearly holding it.

The necklace was just a small blue stone attached to a piece of thread. "Naruto, where did you get this?"

Naruto looked at the necklace that Haruhi was pointing at. His tone changing to one of nostalgia and wistfulness, "That was a gift from the only person who tried to be my friend…. She moved to a different village a long time ago though."

"Do you know which village she moved to?" Anko asked, thinking she might be able to find the person Naruto was talking about if she got a mission out in the general direction of the village.

Naruto shook his head. "I don't even remember her name. Now that I think about it, I'm not sure she gave me one. We met late one night in the middle of the woods. She said she had to get away from her parents for a little while. I offered to hear her out and she told me what was going on at her house. It was her way of venting her frustration I think. We met a few times after that and she gave me this right before she left. I think…she was the only person to call me 'friend'."

Naruto had a far off look as he stared at the blue stone.

Haruhi placed a hand on Naruto's head bring him back to reality. "Is this everything?" Naruto nodded and placed everything back in the case. "Come on, we have a new home and I promise it will be nicer than this place."

Naruto smiled and followed Haruhi, taking one last look around before exiting the apartment. Anko covered the rear closing the door to a big part of Naruto's life.

The conversations on their way to the compound were not so melodramatic.

Naruto complained that Anko would try something in his sleep, of course which Anko agreed to and threw out suggestions on what exactly she would do. Haruhi easily fell into step with the younger female and told Naruto about several pranks Anko had done in her time. The self-declared 'Prankster King' had to admit that he was impressed with some of the pranks Anko had thought up back in the day; at least, on the inside. On the outside however, he went several shade whiter at the thought of her pulling them off on him. However, he sure as hell wouldn't take a prank lying down, and was already scheming different ways to get Anko.

On Naruto's contribution to the conversation, he went over his day, talking of his chase with that 'damned cat'. Anko was surprised because she had also chased that cat when she was a genin. This little tidbit only served to further prove Naruto's claim that the feline was a demon cat. Haruhi just shook her head as Anko and Naruto made plans to capture the cat and interrogate it.

Anko of course was a member of the interrogation department. This meant she tortured people to get information for a living. Anko still went on missions every now and then, but mostly she worked inside the village walls. Naruto at first was a little scared, perhaps rightly so, this is Anko we're talking about here, but after Anko offered to teach him what she knew, Naruto warmed up to her rather quickly.

However, Naruto, perhaps to further demonstrate his lack of survival skills, made a comment about Anko's clothes again. Haruhi went into her version of 'mother mode' and suggested they got her new clothes. Anko didn't like where the conversation was going and thus presumed to redirect Haruhi's attention to Naruto's bright neon-orange jump suit he was currently wearing.

Haruhi just smiled and said something about shopping with the family. Naruto and Anko shared a look and without saying a word they agreed to never make a comment about the other's clothes again.

When they arrived at the compound, Naruto nearly passed out. To put it simply, it was huge. To wit, there were several empty houses for future Uzumaki families, and there were some small parks, full of flowers and trees. The entire compound itself was walled off from Konoha, with only one major gate. Needless to say, the compound was beautiful; and it was Haruhi and Naruto's.

Before they could do so, Haruhi promptly informed Anko and Naruto to never go over the walls. According to Sarutobi, Minato had put seals on the walls; anyone who jumps the wall to get into the compound will get really a nasty surprise.

There are different seals along the wall, causing different effects. One seal puts you under a powerful genjutsu, which makes you believe you're walking into the compound when in reality you are walking in circles no more than five feet away from the wall.

All of this his was done to protect the Uzumakis from the enemies Minato had made. When Minato died, Jiraiya offered to take the seals down. However, Sarutobi told him not to because it would protect Naruto and his family, should he decide to take one from the village. That statement had saddened Sarutobi more than anyone could possibly know.

The road from the gate went straight through the compound and lead to the main house. All the houses they walked past were two stories, with the main house having three stories. The buildings had a western look to them. The two Uzumakis and one Mitarashi stopped and looked up at the mansion they would be living in. Naruto was speechless. Never in his entire life did he think that he would live in a place like this.

"Is… is that a spa building?" asked Anko, who pointed to a building on the right side of the main house. Her voice was shaky. Anko had planned on staying with Haruhi and Naruto if Haruhi gave her permission, but she didn't expect this.

Haruhi smiled, _'Minato, you magnificent bastard. You thought of everything, hadn't you?'_ "I believe there are hot springs and, if I remember correctly, a garden in the main house." Anko's jaw dropped. Anko was not one to ask much of anything from anyone, but asking Haruhi to stay was a small price to be with her family. However after hearing that… Anko would beg and grovel just to spend a week.

"Yatta!!" Naruto yelled and ran to the door. "This place is awesome. I can't wait to see my room! I bet it's as big as my apartment!" Haruhi followed her son into the main building in time to see her son form the Ram Seal. "Kage bushin no jutsu!" Eight Narutos popped into existence. "Alright, the mission is to explore our new home and report the findings back to me! You two take the west side, you two east, you two take second story, and you two take third!"

The clones quickly saluted and ran off, following the orders given to them.

Anko was rather impressed with Naruto. "You can make shadow clones gaki? That's pretty impressive for a genin. How many can you make?"

Naruto placed his hand on his chin, "I'm not sure exactly. When I fought Mizuki, I made enough to fill the entire area…hmmm, I think it was a few hundred."

Anko jaw dropped farther than it did with the spa. "A few hundred!!! Most jonin can't make ten clones! How can you make a few hundred?"

"He is my son." Haruhi stated, pride flowing through every word. Anko just sighed. It paid to be related by blood to a 9-tailed fox. "Both of you follow me for a second. I need to give you both a present." Anko figured this was the surprise Haruhi mentioned earlier.

Naruto was just ecstatic. He just received a house bigger than the apartment building he lived in and now he's about to get a present from his mother. He was so excited that he was about to do his incredibly embarrassing victory dance.

The three walked into the living room and sat down on one of the many pieces of furniture. The living room was well furnished, and the couches and chairs were comfortable. The theme for this room was clearly red as everything had a maroon color to it. There was a chest on the small table in the middle of the room.

Haruhi placed a hand on the chest. "Naruto, this chest belonged to your father." That instantly had Naruto's attention and he leaned in to get a better look. Anko stayed were she sat and remained quiet for Haruhi. "In the chest is everything the Hokage was going to give you when you were old enough to learn about your family." Naruto gulped in anticipation.

Opening the chest, Haruhi started to dig through all the paper work. "Most of it are document proving who you are and with me here you don't need to see that, but I think your father would have wanted you to have this," pulling out Minato's coat and handing it over to Naruto.

Naruto recognized the jacket instantly from the history books. Understandably, he wasn't quite sure on what to do. This jacket belonged to the hero of Konoha, his father, and now he was holding it as a gift to him. Naruto bowed to his mother, not sure what else to do. Holding the jacket to his chest, "Thank you, I'll take good care of this gift." Tears dropped onto the floor.

Haruhi watched her son closely for a little bit to make sure he was ok. Naruto sat back down and looked over the coat, memorizing every crease. Haruhi went back to the chest and pulled out a sheet of paper. "Anko, Minato-kun and I had planned on giving you and Kashi-kun a choice after Naruto was born, but the plans changed."

Haruhi handed the paper over to Anko to look over. Anko read over the document, her jaw dropping and her eyes growing in disbelief.

"Is this what I think it is?" Her eyes never left the paper.

Naruto looked up from the jacket at the way Anko asked the question. Disbelief and shock surrounded every word.

Haruhi just smiled, "They're adoption papers for you to sign. It's a little late now though; it would be a bit weird adopting someone in her late twenties. I just think it would be nice for…" Haruhi was cut off when Anko held out the paper for Haruhi to take. Haruhi glanced at the paper and noticed Anko had tampered with it. "You signed it?"

Anko was blushing and was looking at anything but Haruhi. "My clan abandoned me when I needed them the most. Things haven't changed in all these years. A complete stranger took me in and treated better than my own mother. As far as I'm concerned, you are my mother." Naruto was in shock, but a question was nagging him to no end.

Haruhi was about to take the paper than stopped. "Turn it to the Hokage tomorrow. I need to take care of something else. Don't take it to the adoption agency. The Uzumakis and the person in charge of the program, Haruno Tsuruya…are not seeing eye to eye right now."

Anko understood. She had a pretty good idea of what is going on. Naruto, on the other hand, was clueless. "First, where did Anko get that pen?" Naruto felt as if his brain would explode if he didn't ask.

Anko gave a smile at her little brother. "I'll show you if you're really curious."

Naruto chose to ignore Anko and looked at Haruhi.

"Why are we having problems with Sakura-chan's mom?" You don't have a crush on someone for years without learning the basic information about the person.

"It's a long and upsetting story, but don't worry about it. In the mean time, go find yourself a room. I think your clones should be done with recon." Naruto wanted to ask more, but Haruhi didn't seem like she wanted to talk about it. Naruto could read people really well, when he wanted to. So he chose to listen to Haruhi and left to catch up with his clones.

After Naruto left, Anko looked over to Haruhi. "What happened?"

Haruhi thus proceeded to explain how Teuchi, the man in the picture, had wanted to adopt Naruto but was stopped by Tsuruya; she also told Anko about the Counsel meeting. Anyone in the Uzumaki clan was going to have to know what he or she was up against.

Haruhi knew that Naruto had a crush on his teammate and didn't want to make problems for his genin team. That was why Naruto was kept in the dark for now.

Anko was pissed and visibly took deep breath to calm her self. "I actually can believe someone would do that. You know I can always…" Anko left her sentence unfinished for Haruhi to finish on her own.

Haruhi shook her head, "No Anko. At first I thought the same thing, but her daughter and Naruto are on the same genin team and it would only cause problems for my son later. For now, let it go."

"But…" Anko still wanted to do something. Leave snakes in her garden at the very least. Anko wouldn't even make them poisonous… well most of them anyway.

"No, Anko. The fact that Naruto has me and this," Haruhi spread her arms out to show she meant the house. "Is the best revenge. Also, he soon will have you as well. So please don't start trouble."

"Fine." Anko pouted, "If I have to be good, at least it will be for a good reason. I'll see the Hokage early tomorrow then get my things." Anko rose from her seat and started to walk off. Haruhi barely heard, "I wonder where Naruto is." It only took a few minuets before Haruhi heard a high-pitched girly scream. _'Naruto, you're too loud__.'_

The fox sighed and went to see what Anko did to her son this time. She stopped right at the door. Turning to the chest, Haruhi just stared at it for a little while, a billion things running through her head. A loud 'get away from me you crazy lady' and 'come on, it will be fun' snapped Haruhi out of her trance. "Hey, nothing better be broken."

"Crap, it's the cops; you'll never take me alive and I have a hostage!" Anko called back.

"Get these snakes off of me!" Naruto yelled.

This would become a regular scene for the Uzumakis in the future.


	5. Chapter 5

**I do not own Naruto.**

"Otouto," was cooed into Naruto's ear. "Otouto, wake up otouto." Naruto swatted at the source of the sound in his sleep and mumble something incoherent.

Anko simply moved back out of reach. Once Naruto settled back into motionless sleep, she moved back in. "Otouto, wakey wakey." Naruto just rolled over, "If you don't get up, I'm going to put a poisonous snake in your bed." Anko said the last part in a singsong voice.

Naruto moved a bit, "Don't…care…raining ramen…die happy."

Anko went stiff, "Well, that was unexpected." Anko grabbed the bottom of the mattress and flung Naruto and all into the air. "WAKE UP!"

Naruto laid on the ground groaning. "What the hell… I was having a good dream." Naruto stood and looked over at his would be attacker. Anko still had some sheets in her hands and a smile was plastered on her face.

"Why, good morning otouto. How are you on this fine day?" Anko practically sang every word. It was clear Naruto's new big sister was enjoying herself immensely. "Clean your mess and get ready. You're going to help me move."

"My mess? You flipped my bed." Naruto looked around for his alarm clock. If Anko woke him up, it had to be early. He soon realized his clock was gone. Naruto's head snapped all around, "Where's my clock?"

"Are you talking about this clock?" Anko held out the device for Naruto. "I notice you set it for five last night. What the hell is wrong with you? Most ANBU don't wake up that early, if they can help it."

Naruto grabbed his clock and placed it on a dresser near his bed. "I get breakfast at six from Ayame-neechan."

Anko made a face at hearing Naruto call someone else nee-chan. "Well, you might want to hurry, because it's six already."

"NANI!?!" Naruto started to run around like a chicken with its head chopped off. He first ran to the side of the room were his closet would be at his old apartment, which was the opposite wall for his new room. When he realized his mistake, he made an about face and raced for his closet. Gathering his orange jump suit, he flew out of his room. Running up one hall, Anko could hear several doors open. "Dammit!! Where is the bathroom?" Naruto came running back down the hall, passed Anko, and made the first right he found down another hall.

Haruhi walked out of her room at the end of the hall. Yawning while making her way to stand next to Anko "You going to tell him that it is only five and he only slept through his alarm?"

Anko smiled at her adopted mother, "This will teach him not to sleep through his alarm clock and let it wake everyone else."

Haruhi sighed, "Naruto it is a quarter past five. You still have plenty of time to get ready."

"NANI!?!" Was called out from somewhere in the mansion. It took less than half a second for Naruto to get back. His face was red and he was breathing hard. "YOU!!" Naruto pointed an accusing finger at Anko. "I'll get you for this!"

Anko put on an all too innocent smile. "What are you talking about? I only turned your alarm clock off and woke you up."

Haruhi pointed to a near by door. "Naruto dear the bathroom is right there." Her plan was to defuse the situation and it worked. Naruto in a huff walked into the bathroom and slammed the door behind him.

Haruhi looked over at her new official daughter. "I don't think you should have done that Anko. If anything breaks in the house you'll be in big trouble."

"Yes, mom." Anko said playfully. "Besides, what's the worst he could do?"

"Famous last words dear. Now take care of Naruto when he gets out. I need to do something in the back today." Haruhi had a motherly tone at that very moment and Anko was glad to hear that tone once again.

"Sure thing. Sooooo…you mind telling me what you're going to be doing?" Anko asked curiously.

"Oh, something for Naruto and the future of the clan." Haruhi answered with a smirk. The fox enjoyed how Anko would go from serious ninja to a begging schoolgirl when the purple haired nin really wanted to know, like right now. Haruhi was even more thrilled to see that even after 12 years, that part of her daughter's character hadn't changed.

"Come on, tell meeee. I won't tell Naruto." Anko pleaded with her mother.

"Sorry Anko, but it is a surprise." Haruhi walked back to her room and gave Anko a big smile before closing the door. Anko crossed her arms and with a frown decided to wait in the living room.

It only took about 15 minutes for Naruto to get ready for Ichiraku's and after sharing some words with Anko about how she woke him up. They were off. It was a rather quiet walk. Anko and Naruto soon realized that they didn't really know that much about each other. Yesterday, they mostly talked about what had happened that day, but not really each other.

Naruto wanted to give Anko a chance at the least. He knew Haruhi cared about Anko. The fact was made obvious when the adoption paper came out. Naruto was always more than happy to get new friends and in this case family, but it was happening rather fast. He hardly knew anything about Haruhi, his mother. Looking over at Anko as they walk, Naruto really thought about what to say.

With all the tact he could muster, "Hey crazy lady, you knew my parents back before I was born, right?"

A vain on Anko's forehead bulged at 'crazy lady'. "First it is nee-chan brat, not 'crazy lady', and yes I knew your parents." Anko was also trying to be as tactful on what she said to Naruto. Anko wanted to make a good impression on her new otouto… even though he was making it rather hard.

"I call them like I see them and you are one crazy lady." Naruto stated proudly to Anko's chagrin. The next question came out more somber. "Anyway could you tell me what they were like?"

Anko looked down at Naruto. The snake charmer ignored the blonds question in favor of his earlier comment. There would always be time to reminisce later. "If you call them like you see them, why don't you call Haruhi 'Ka-chan'? She is our mother after all."

Naruto stumbled a little, but caught himself. That question came from far left field for Naruto. "I uuuhh…I don't know. I just don't. Why do you want to know?"

"I noticed that you didn't call her mom and was curious. I know she wasn't there for 12 years. I know because she would have been there for me too, but that wasn't ka-chan's fault." Naruto was listening with all his attention and if it weren't for Anko suddenly moving him from his current path, Naruto would have eaten signpost for breakfast.

Scratching the back of his head. "Thanks."

Giving Naruto a big grin, "No problem. A ninja should always be watching his surroundings. That's lesson one gaki. Now back to what I was saying. I think it would make Haruhi happy if you called her mom. She is taking care of you now and she is desperately trying to make up the years she was gone."

Naruto thought over what Anko said again and again. _'Does Haruhi-chan really want to be called ka-chan?'_ Anko simply remained quiet and let Naruto take in everything she said. If it weren't for the usual smell of ramen, the ramen lover would have missed his favorite dinner. Naruto's body was on automatic pilot. The route to Ichiraku's really didn't change that much from his apartment to his new compound. The distance was farther, but the direction was the same. Once Naruto had made it to some more familiar streets, his body did the rest and Anko just followed.

Naruto did know the village like the back of his hand though. When nowhere is totally safe, even your home. A boy will wonder around to find refuge. Naruto was no different at a young age. He knew secret locations that even most ninja's didn't know about. If one ever needed a guide for Konoha, Naruto could get you anywhere in the shortest amount of time.

Walking in to Ichiraku's was like a repeat with Haruhi when Anko also read the name of the diner out loud. "Ayame-neechan, are here. I brought someone for breakfast if you don't mind." Naruto to his normal seat while Anko sat down next to him and with the skills of a veteran ninja memorized every detail.

"No, I don't mind otouto." Ayame had started to call Naruto otouto when she found out about the adoption. This wasn't looked over by Anko, but she remained silent for now.

It didn't take long for Ayame to bring out breakfast and as soon as the bowls of ramen were set onto the counter. The battle for superior neechan position began. Ayame didn't know that Anko even existed, seeing as the chef's daughter stayed close to the diner and Anko never went near the place. Anko however knew that Ayame had years of being Naruto's neechan and if she wanted to be the person Naruto turned to for help, Anko would need to work hard to out do Ayame.

Anko sized Ayame up. Ayame saw this and gave Anko a hard stare right back. Working at a restaurant meant you either learned how to ignore criticism or you learn how do dish it right back. Ayame was clearly in the latter bracket. Anko was mildly impressed with that. It wasn't every day a civilian would stand up against a ninja. Ayame was sure what to make of Anko. On one hand Ayame just had a stare down with the female ninja. On the other hand, Naruto seemed to like her and Anko seemed to be treating the blond well. Ayame had made it a personal mission to help out anyone that was kind to her otouto.

Ayame put up a smile more for show than actual greeting. "Naruto-kun, who is your friend. I've never seen her around before." _'And with clothes like that __I definitely would__have remembered.'_

Naruto, who was in his fourth bowl of ramen, looked over at his two neechans completely oblivious to the mounting tension in the air. "This crazy lady is Anko-chan. She's going to be my sister."

"Oh, I see…NANI?! What do you mean she is going to be your sister!?" Ayame was in shock once again. It was starting to become a common occurrence. Between Haruhi, her father's failed adoption, and now Anko; Ayame was going to have a heart attack at an early age.

This time it was Anko who answered. The dango loving ninja was enjoying this more than she should. "That's right. I knew ka-chan back when I was about Naruto's age. She was going to adopt me after Naruto was born and after 12 years that hasn't changed."

Anko had a smirk on her face till Naruto stepped in. "I thought Haruhi-chan said you were too old, but you signed mumnghgmum"

"Eat your breakfast otouto and grow big and strong." _'Dammit brat, I almost had her.'_ Anko was shoving some ramen down Naruto throat in an attempt to shut him up. Naruto was actually quiet pleased with Anko actions and enjoyed the sweet taste of ramen in his mouth.

Ayame was no ninja, but she wasn't stupid either and caught on to what Naruto was saying rather quickly. _'So she is trying to take my otouto.'_ "So, Naruto-kun how is the ramen? I mean is it any better than all the other times you come here on a daily basis?"

Naruto looked up at Ayame curiously, "No…did you do something different?" Naruto looked down at the ramen and inspected the noodle dish, looking for what Ayame may have been talking about.

Ayame would normally be upset at Naruto not noticing any changes she made to his usual meal, but she hadn't made any changes and this conversation had another meaning. "Naruto-kun I'm surprised. Normally you can tell when I do something different. Remember that one time when I added a new spice and you ran around screaming it was to spicy. That was a good memory."

"Maybe for you Ayame-neechan, but I couldn't taste anything for a week after that." Naruto groaned out. "That one time you…" That was the start of Ayame and Naruto recounting several memories that they shared.

Anko had made the number one mistake that rookies make. She underestimated Ayame's ability to fight back and overestimated her own chances of actually beating the brunette. Anko knew Naruto for a grant total of a day. How could she think she could compete with someone who knew the blond for years?

Anko was bighting her lower lip by the third story. The purple haired jonin wanted to get into the conversation, but most of what Naruto and Ayame were saying was inside jokes. It was clear she lost this round badly, and if it weren't for a timely intervention, her mood for the rest of the day would have been shot.

"Naruto are you here?" A man with a scare from cheek to cheek under his eyes walked in. He was wearing his usual chunin vest and his haiti-ate around his forehead.

"Iruka-sensei." Naruto called out in excitement. "I haven't seen you in a while. How is everything?"

Iruka smiled at his favorite student from the academy. Naruto reminded him so much of himself back when he was younger. "Everything is good. My students didn't have homework yesterday, so I thought I might pay you a visit." Iruka wasn't the type to put things off till the last minuet, but he had a lot of papers to go through and even his mornings were consumed with work.

"Iruka-kun, I've haven't seen you in a while. You should come by more often, even to say hello." Ayame said happily. The brunette had a rather large crush on the teacher. Naruto's instructors always treated him poorly from what the blond reported when he would convey his day. That was until Iruka became his instructor. Naruto started to have good days at the academy and was actually learning.

The day Ayame started to fall for the chunin was when he first paid for Naruto's ramen. Iruka had brought Naruto to treat the blond to his favorite meal. Ayame watched as the two laughed and how Iruka treated Naruto like a little brother. It was the first time anyone other than her father or herself treated Naruto like a person. As time went on and Iruka treated Naruto more, Ayame got to know Iruka better. Ayame believed that Iruka would make a great father… and he was attractive to boot.

"Ayame-chan, it has been a long time, but with my favorite student off being a genin and with a new class to break in. I've been rather busy. As I said, today was a light day." Iruka smiled at Ayame causing her to blush.

"Iruka have you forgotten something." Anko said with her arms crossed and holding an even stare on the man.

"Anko…what are you doing here, this early? I didn't know you liked Ramen. By the way you go on about dango, I assumed that was all you ate." Iruka said to his fellow ninja with a small smile.

Anko had also taken a liking to Iruka. He was one of the few people that treated her with respect that wasn't out of fear. Anko wasn't as far along as Ayame, but after hearing about how Iruka played mud war with Naruto. Anko was more intrigued by the man. Now that she really looked at Iruka, he was attractive.

"Oh, nothing. My otouto invited me for breakfast. I heard you had a mud war with my little brother." Anko wanted to see how Iruka acted around Naruto first before she really went for the kill.

Iruka had a confused look, "Your 'otouto'? I don't think I know who your talking about." Looking around to make sure he didn't miss anyone. "Is he in the bathroom?"

Anko smiled and pulled out the adoption papers for Iruka to see. "I'm an official member of the Uzumakis when I turn this over to the hokage later today."

"WHAT!!!" Both Iruka and Ayame yelled. Ayame shot half her body over the counter to see the papers with Iruka. The two read over the papers and were speechless. Iruka couldn't believe it. Ayame didn't completely believe that Anko was telling the truth. Now there was legal documentation.

"Iruka-sensei, you should see my new house. It is bigger than my Apartment building. Ka-chan has made the Uzumaki a legal clan." Naruto tested the word ka-chan and found that it wasn't that hard to say.

Iruka didn't miss anything. "Ka-chan? What do you mean?"

"My mother woke from her comma." Naruto remembered what Haruhi told him to say in order to cover up the fact she was a kyuubi. "She got the counsel to form the Uzumaki clan and got us a compound to live in."

Iruka's jaw was hanging open. _'His ka-chan, a compound, what happened since he left my class?'_ "I…you… What's going on?" Iruka yelled. His brain was trying to wrap around all the new information and failing miserably.

Ayame was on her side of the counter again and looking at Iruka. The brunette wasn't sure how to comfort her crush at the moment, but she tried anyway. "Iruka-kun, I've met Haruhi, Naruto's mom. She is a very nice person and she looking out for Naruto."

"Ka-chan is a good person Iruka. She took me in and helped me get through a hard part of my life. Naruto is very lucky to have her." Anko added.

Iruka listened to both women, but that didn't change his idea much. He cared about Naruto and he did know anything about Haruhi. The chunin knew Anko was a good person underneath her more sadistic exterior. However this Haruhi, Iruka needed to talk with her.

"Naruto you said you have a compound?" Iruka waited for Naruto to nod in confirmation. "Is your mother there now?"

Anko caught on to what Iruka was going to do. "Ka-chan is home, but she said she needed to do something today. Also she isn't a morning person, maybe you should wait till later."

Iruka thought about it and looked over to Naruto. No, no he couldn't wait. "Where is the compound?" Anko sighed. Naruto gave his sensei the directions and after Iruka said his good byes, he was gone to talk with Haruhi.

"Hey gaki, you done? We still have a lot to do." Anko asked Naruto after noticing he wasn't eating.

Naruto stood, "Yah, I'm done, but I have to be at the training ground at seven."

Anko gave Naruto a sideways look. "Isn't Kakashi your jonin instructor?"

"Yah, why?" Naruto asked confused.

"Then you have plenty of time. That man is never less than two hours late." Anko stated with a more up beat tone. "Like I said plenty of time. Now our first stop is the Hokage's office. Then after that, my place."

Naruto wasn't thrilled at the idea of helping Anko move, but he couldn't think of a good argument. Sighing, "Alright lets go. See yah later Ayame-neechan."

"See you later otouto." Both the girls watched as Naruto left ahead of Anko. "You, I don't know who you are, but if you hurt Naruto in any way…" Ayame threatened Anko in a tone that suggests that she would go through with her threat.

"Listen, I have no intention of hurting Naruto. I wasn't lying when I said his mother and I go way back and she did plan on adopting me. Also I didn't know Naruto was her son. If I did, we wouldn't be having this discussion." Anko's tone was just as harsh as Ayame's. "In the mean-time, let's at least be civil around Naruto. Sound like a deal?"

Ayame watched Anko long and hard for any sign that she might be lying. "Fine, but I'm warning you."

Anko smiled at her new rival. "You got spunk, I like that. Anyway I'll probably see you some other time, till then." Anko waved walking out of the diner. What met her was an annoyed looking Naruto.

"What took you?" The blonde's arms were crossed and he was giving Anko a questioning look.

"Nothing, just saying goodbye to that Ayame chick." Anko said defensively. It irritated her that she was being treated like this, but she reminded herself that she was the outsider. "Come on, Hokage-sama should be at his office by now."

________________________________________________________________________

Knock knock knock

"Hold on. I'm coming." _'Who could that be.' _Haruhi was in the kitchen on the first floor, having her breakfast when she heard the first set of knocks. The fox thought it was her imagination at first. There was only a small group of people who would even know that anyone lived here. The front gate was open, but it has been only a day, not even that.

This was the third set of knocks when Haruhi made it to the door. Opening the door, the white hair mother was greeted with an upset and scared face. Haruhi was on guard, before she was even at the door. The fact that she didn't recognize the face didn't help. "Can I help you?"

Iruka had almost sprinted to the compound and was slightly out of breath when he got to the door. He didn't take in any sight or admire the compounds. He was focused on one thing and that was to make sure Naruto wasn't in any danger. "Yes, are you Haruhi?"

"Yes I am and you are?" Haruhi didn't let her guard down for a second.

"My name is Iruka and I'm Naruto's old instructor, and I would like to talk to you." Iruka was using all his ninja skills to observe Haruhi. He didn't know anything about her and he wasn't going to leave Naruto with her if Haruhi even appeared the smallest bit questionable.

Haruhi took a closer look at Iruka and soon realized that it was the same man from the mud caked man with Naruto in the picture she saw earlier. Haruhi quickly tried to be the most hospitable host she could be. "Iruka, come in. I've heard nothing but good things from Naruto about you." Haruhi moved out of the way and Iruka walked in.

Haruhi led him to the living room and had him sit down. "Can I get you anything; tea, coffee?"

Shaking his head, "No thank you. I just wanted to talk to you. I met with Naruto this morning and he told me about you. You understand that Naruto and I are close?" Haruhi nodded. The way Naruto talked about his old sensei, it would be hard not to know. "Then you can understand that when someone's claiming to be Naruto's mother would be big news to me."

Haruhi smiled at the man. _'He is here to make sure Naruto is safe.'_ "You should have seen the council when I told them he was my son."

Iruka was stunned by Haruhi's comment. "The council knows?"

Haruhi smile grew a little. "Yes and there nothing they can do." Iruka stiffened till Haruhi continued. "If the bastards had their way, Naruto would be alone for the rest of his life."

"What do you mean?" Iruka was confused, but he never met the counsel and had a good opinion of them like most people.

"Maybe I should start from the beginning." Haruhi started to tell Iruka how she met Minato. The story continued up to her 'coma'. Haruhi did leave out all information that would be too revealing however. Iruka watch Haruhi with all his skill as a ninja to catch any lie. Luckily, he wasn't good enough to catch Haruhi's little white lies. Iruka was no Ibiki, after all. Luckily again for the fact that Haruhi really wasn't lying to Iruka, other than the Kyuubi parts that is. Iruka was really listening when Haruhi got to the part where she talked to Naruto on the Hokage monument. With that the story ended with the council meeting.

"How could they do something like that? Naruto is a good kid. Do they hate him that much?" Iruka asked stunned with everything he just learned.

Iruka initial mission to make sure Naruto wasn't tricked was over with what he now knew. So far Haruhi has done nothing but made sure Naruto was taken care of. Before he had no family, few friends, no past, and a run down apartment. Now Naruto had a mother, a sister, a clan, a compound, and someone to tell him who he was.

Haruhi walked over to a counter and picked up a picture. She looked at the picture fondly. It was the one that was in the chest. Walking over she handed it to Iruka. "If you need more proof of who I am I can get it, but I'm sure that this picture will be enough."

Iruka looked at the picture and his eyes went wide. "Is that the Fourth?" He was surprised to hear that the Fourth was the father, but visual proof was much more effective.

Haruhi smiled sadly. "Yes that's Minato-kun. Naruto looks just like him doesn't he?" Iruka looked closer and could see the resemblance. Iruka began to kick himself mentally. Any doubts he may have had were washed away.

Being a teacher at the academy meant he had to go over the Fourth every now and then. He had seen Minato's pictures several times, but never once did he think Naruto could be related. Now that someone pointed it out for him, he could see it. The two look so similar it was astounding. _'How could I have not seen it?'_

"I can't believe I missed something so obvious. I mean the Fourth's face is on the mountain and I never once thought that he looked like Naruto. I…I don't know what to say." Iruka was pissed at the counsel for what they did at the meeting; he was pissed at the village for not seeing the resemblance between Minato and naruto, but most of all he was piss he himself didn't see it.

"Iruka, I would like to thank you." Haruhi said.

Iruka head snapped up to face Haruhi. "What?"

Haruhi could see the shame in his eyes and knew she needed to do everything to make sure he left with good spirit. "I would like to thank you for helping Naruto. I heard that all his instructors were assholes. Not one of them even tried to help Naruto, some even went out of their way to get Naruto to fail." Iruka couldn't argue about that; Mizuki was an easy example.

Haruhi's eyes took a more comforting appeal to them, "Till you came along. You took care of Naruto and honestly tried to help him. That was more than pretty much the entire village would do. You should hear Naruto talk about you. It is nothing other than how great you are." That brought a small smile to Iruka's face. "I owe you so much."

"No you don't." Iruka shook his head.

"Yes I do." Haruhi countered. "If you ever need anything, please don't hesitate to ask. You're a big part of Naruto's life and you are always welcomed here." Haruhi gave Iruka a warm smile. "Are you sure I can't get you anything?"

Iruka looked down at the picture again. He could tell that the boy was Kakashi and one of the girls was Anko. He also noted that Haruhi was pregnant in the picture. "No, I think I got everything I wanted."

"The fact that you came over immediately after finding out about me, to protect Naruto speaks highly about you, Iruka-san." Haruhi said turn her smile from comforting to lighthearted.

Iruka blushed in embarrassment, "Sorry about that, but I wanted to make sure you weren't lying or using Naruto. This is a ninja village and Naruto is…special. Namikaze-san, please be careful and take care of Naruto."

Haruhi sighed, "Firstly, it is Uzumaki, not Namikaze."

"You married the Fourth. You're wearing a ring. Doesn't that mean you took his clan name?" Iruka asked.

"His clan name is Uzumaki. That may come out later, if the council allows it. You see Minato had many enemies before he came to Konoha. So he changed his name to Namikaze. Do you understand?" Haruhi was beginning to realize the name thing was going to be a pain.

Iruka was feeling like he should question his entire life by now. "I don't…I can't…you coming out of a coma will change history at this rate."

Haruhi had a good laugh at that. "Yes, I guess it will. Iruka-san, I only have one request and that is to keep what you learned here to yourself. I need several days to get stronger before I announce the formation of the Uzumaki clan. I'm sure when everything you learn is placed in the history books, there will be an uproar."

Iruka couldn't argue against that. He could already see the mob demanding answers. Iruka handed the picture back to Haruhi, "I think I need back to get to class. I didn't realize it got so late. It was nice meeting you."

Haruhi escorted Iruka to the door and said her good-byes. Right before Haruhi completely closed the door, she heard a 'This place is beautiful!' come from an Iruka who finally took a look around. _'He's a good man. To bad Minato got me first. Now I need to go summoning.'_

"Did you really have to threaten the old man? He nearly had a heart attack!" Naruto yelled at Anko. The demon vessel had never seen the Hokage so white.

"Yes, I had to be ready in case he didn't approve. You want me as a big sister don't you?" Anko yelled back. Naruto chose not to answer, which made Anko raise an eyebrow. "You will answer the question or I will sick Raja on you."

"YES, YES, I WANT YOU FOR MY NEECHAN." Naruto yelled out. Raja was the biggest snake he had ever met, and whenever that diamond back looks at him…he felt like a full course meal.

"Good." Anko said perky like. Naruto and Anko had been going at it since they left the tower. Anko had threatened Naruto's grandfather figure and he felt like defending the Hokage. Neither of them was really upset. The experience was more of a bonding session than anything.

_Anko and Naruto were let in as soon as Sarutobi knew they were there. _

"_Anko, Naruto, how can I help you?" The Hokage had a smile greeting the two. That was going to change._

"_Hey old man, how are you?" Naruto greeted with his own smile._

"_Good, today is a nice day. I take it your compound was in good shape. I've been putting D-rank missions out to keep the place clean." Sarutobi was really having a good day and in his line of work, those were rare. So the Hokage made it a point to enjoy them while he could._

"_The place is beautiful. Whoever you got to clean the place did a good job. As to why we are here." Anko pulled out the adoption paper. "I need you to make sure this gets approved." _

_Sarutobi looked over the paper. "Anko, you're a little old to be…__what's that?"_

_Anko was holding a little orange book in her left hand. "Only your copy of the latest Ichi Ichi Paradise books." Biting her thumb and doing some hand seals. A puff of smoke revealed a massive diamond back rattlesnake._

"_How __can I help you, Mistress__Anko." the snake-summon bowed politely._

" _IT TALKS!!" Naruto jump ten feet up and as far back as he could to get away from the snake._

_Anko looked back at her otouto with a smile. "If you're good, I'll teach you how to summon him." That got Naruto's attention. "Raja open your mouth for a minute." The snake obediently fallowed Anko's order. Anko turned back to the Hokage and her smile went wicked. "Either sign the paper or the book becomes snake food."_

_Sarutobi's good day __was thus shattered, and fear that he hadn't felt for a long time suddenly shot through his entire body. It was safe to say he sign the paper without__ question._

Currently the two were walking to Anko's old place. It was at the far end of the village, by Area 44. As they walked along, both saw the looks they were getting. He did his usual smiling back and making metal note on which his next target will be. Anko glared in retaliation right back. Naruto noticed that some of the villagers started to shy away from them and wonder why they would do that. No one ever shied away from him before. That was until he looked at his traveling companion. That was when he realized why people were shying away.

"Anko why do you glare back at people. It doesn't help. They just come back meaner later." Naruto said to Anko.

Anko looked down at the boy as if he grew several new limbs. "Why not? If they are going to glare at me then I'm going to glare right back. I'm a ninja of this village and anyone who attacks me without just cause is going to end up in the hospital with jail time waiting for them when they get out."

Naruto was surprised, "I thought ninjas can't hurt civilians?"

Anko shrugged, "That is the most obvious law to protect civilians from ninjas who would abuse their power. That doesn't mean that we can't defend ourselves. If a civilian attacks a ninja, the Hokage always gets involved. No civilian in their right mind would attack a ninja. So it usually means that the Nin did something bad enough for the civilian to risk his life. Even then, they should have taken up with someone in charge and not handle it themselves."

Naruto lowered his head to think a little bit. "So if I'm attack, the old man would step in and make sure I did nothing wrong?"

Anko nodded her head. "As long as we don't give them a reason to attack us, we won't get in trouble. Glaring isn't good enough for us to get into trouble. You're a genin now, don't take their crap lying down."

Naruto wouldn't say he took it lying down, but he never glared back because it used to get him beat by the civilians. The ninja weren't stupid enough to cross the Hokage or the ANBU, but they would glare and curse. Before, Naruto wasn't strong enough to defend himself and no one would ever say they saw anything, even though sometimes there were plenty of people watching.

Now he was a genin who could give some of the lower level chunin a run for their money. Naruto found his first victim. It was a tall street vendor with average build. He was glaring, so Naruto gave one right back, not realizing he put a tiny bit of killer intent into it. Naruto didn't know how to put killer intent into anything; for the most part it was a fluke. Anko was still impressed with her otouto as the man immediately found something else to do.

"That pretty good, but you still have a ways to go before you can compete with me." Anko said as she put another man in his place with a hard stare.

"Oh yeah." Naruto took Anko's challenge and the rest of the walk soon turned into a game of who could scare of the most assholes.

They played the game till they finally reach Anko home. "I win gaki, better luck next time."

Naruto crossed his arms and pouted, "Just because I wouldn't glare at women with their children…"

"You're soft gaki, I'll fix that soon enough." Anko cut him off with a smile. Anko opened her door and ushered Naruto in. It was a nice place. The apartment was much nicer than Naruto's old place, but low class for anyone else. The room was small and there was no bath tube from what Naruto could see from the open bathroom door. The kitchen, the living room, and bedroom were one room. Anko's apartment was a mess, but for some reason it was still very organized. Her ninja gear was in one messy pile; her dirty clothes were in a separate pile and her clothes she could wear a few more times were in a pile in another corner of the room.

"Alright gaki, I don't have a lot of boxes, so you are going to have to make a lot of shadow clones to carry all this." Of course, Anko wasn't going to tell Naruto that this was her way of gauging Naruto chakra supplies.

Naruto sighed and performed his Kage bushin. He produced 20 clones and they began gathering what they could. Anko was impressed to see that it didn't even faze him. When pulling that maneuver, it would knock out most jonin from chakra exhaustion. Anko grabbed a few boxes from her closet and began to gather some of the things she didn't want to be seen when they walk back to the compound.

Some of the Naruto froze and stared at Anko. "What?" Anko asked after realizing that she was being watched.

One of the Narutos pointed, "I didn't think you had underwear." All the clones that had stop to watch Anko quickly puffed out of existence as a snake bit every one of them on the forehead.

"Gaki, make more clones!" Anko called out as she stuck more of her under garments into a box. Naruto complied and there were another ten clones. They were about five minutes into the packing when the real Naruto found some pictures of Anko with Haruhi.

Naruto grabbed one picture to examine it. "Ka-chan is really important to you…isn't she?"

Anko looked up from her packing. She saw Naruto looking down at a picture Anko had. The picture was of Anko and Haruhi cooking together. That was also the day Anko learned she sucked at cooking. "Ka-chan took me in and helped me when I needed it most."

"What happened?" Naruto looked up to see a sorrowful look on Anko. Naruto noticed at how wrong it looked on the face of a person who acted so much like him.

"I really don't want to talk about why things turned out the way they did, but after an incident that involved my sensei, I was hated throughout the village. I was glared at, called names, treated like dirt." Naruto immediately saw why Haruhi said they had a lot in common. "Even my own family, the Mitarashi clan turned their backs on me. It's hard to hear 'traitor' come from your own mother."

Anko's face was down cast and suddenly brightened, "Then your mother showed up. She found me crying and took me in. She knew what happened between my sensei and I, and frankly, didn't give a damn. I was still young and she felt she needed to help me. At first she just gave me a haven from the village. A place where I felt safe and soon after, I was with Haruhi all the time."

"We grew close and soon I saw her as the mother that had truly and actually cared for me. Ka-chan gave me friends, a home, she even trusted me enough to tell me her secret" Anko was smiling by the end.

Naruto listened carefully to Anko to make sure that he didn't miss anything.

Anko's smile faded a little. "After your mom disappeared, I was devastated; I was told you both died. I was really looking forward to having you around. Someone I could call 'little sister' and teach what I knew too."

"Little sister?" Naruto asked with a side ways look.

"I was kind of hoping for a girl." Anko shrugged, "Anyway Kakashi was someone I considered a friend, but after that day he left and mourned by himself. I did my best to get by, but my clan refused to even acknowledge my existence and with the village still hating me it was hard. But now Haruhi is back and I don't plan to losing her this time."

Naruto looked at the picture again, before placing the picture down and walking up to Anko. Anko was not sure what was going on till she felt the blond wrap his arms around her waist in a hug.

"I'm glad you're around, nee-chan."

Anko was stunned. _'Did he just… he did.'_ Anko smile went from ear to ear as she returned his hug.

Once the hug was over, Naruto took a step back. "This never happened." With that said he went back to work.

Anko's smile didn't leave her face. "Sure thing gaki." Anko also went back to work and the rest of the packing was done in comfortable silence, only broken now and then by Naruto finding things and making a joke.

The manager of the apartment complex that Anko lived in was frankly more than happy to see the 'traitorous whore' leave. He wisely said nothing though. Some of the tenants that had got to know Anko did say their goodbyes to the new Uzumaki however.

The trip back, Anko and the Narutos agreed to head home by rooftops. They didn't want to run the risk of someone deciding to air their grievances on Naruto when he is carrying a bunch of Anko things.

The trip back was also relatively quiet. Naruto was thinking over everything Anko told him. He would never in a thousand years have realized that someone else had gone through what he was going through. He felt closer to Anko for it and he saw Haruhi in a whole new light. _'Even if I wasn't her son, she __still__ would have helped me, no matter what.'_ The blond now knew he could call Haruhi 'ka-chan' with no problems and he could call Anko nee-chan because she, more than anyone, even Ayame. Knew what it was like to be him.

When they made it home, Naruto took Anko's things to the room the purple haired girl had chosen as her own. Anko gave orders to the Naruto's as one by one they came in and dropped off her things. It took a grand total of an hour and a half to finish.

It was all thanks to Naruto's clones… Even though the clones constantly got in each other's way. Anko quickly dispatched the clones as soon as they dropped their loads. Naruto was a little worried and felt more than a little bit disturbed when he saw the smile Anko had as she sliced one of his clones in half. When the last armload was dropped, Anko said she would take care of making it more organized when they get back.

"What do you mean when we get back? Are you coming to my team training today?" Naruto asked. The blond had no idea that Anko was going to come with him.

"I will be going with you, but I think you'll get the rest of the day off." Anko said with a smile growing a little every second.

Naruto gave Anko a questioning look. He could already see that his nee-chan was mischievous. "Why do you say that?"

Anko smile was very big and not very warm. "I am going to have a talk with that one-eyed pervert and I don't think he's going to like it."

"Why, what did Kakashi-sensei do?" Naruto was curious as to what would make Anko upset.

"He knew that you were alive and didn't tell me." Anko said. Her tone was rather flat.

Naruto's eyes widened at that, and found him-self speechless. _'She's mad because she wasn't told that I was alive?'_ Naruto, in a span of just a few days, had found a family that truly cared for him. Naruto couldn't help but smile at the women who wanted to be his nee-chan. He didn't have to ask like Ayame. Anko honestly wanted to be with Naruto and Haruhi.

Naruto showed up at the designated meeting spot. Sasuke and Sakura were both there and as far as he could see that Kakashi wasn't there. The blond was an hour and 45 minuets late and still earlier than Kakashi. Anko was hiding. She told her otouto that she wanted to surprise the jonin-sensei.

"Naruto!! Where have you been? You're late!" Sakura yelled at the blond. She had marched over with anger in her eyes.

Naruto gulp, "Hay Sakura-chan. I had other things to do and…"

"No excuses. You were told to be here at seven." Sakura said cutting off Naruto's explanation.

Sakura had noticed that she was alone with Sasuke and desperately tried to get anything out of the Uchiha while she had such a chance. The pink haired girl had failed miserably and thoughts of 'what's wrong with me' and 'why doesn't he like me' were running through her head. It was one of the rare times she had wanted Naruto around to help her get her mind off such thoughts. However Naruto was nowhere to be found, so when the blond did show up, she exploded on him.

Sakura didn't hate Naruto, but she did see him as an obstacle to get Sasuke. Naruto was always around whenever she tried to get Sasuke to interact with her. Before she thought that Sasuke was acting cold because there was another guy around, but this time it was just her and Sasuke and he was still just as cold. It angered Sakura endlessly that she couldn't blame the blond this time because he chose to be late today.

'_You're a genin now, __don't__ take their crap lying down.' _Anko words flashed through his head. Naruto took a resounding step towards Sakura, crossed his arms, and giving a glare of his own. "So I was late. Kakashi-sensei isn't here and I was helping someone close to me. Do you have a problem with that?" Naruto's tone was firm, even if he didn't want to fight with Sakura.

Sakura took a step back. Once again, Naruto had surprised her. Normally Naruto would take her abuse with a smile, but now he seemed to be biting back and it was scaring her. Naruto was changing from his usual happy self in her eyes. That, plus the realization was slowly dawning upon her that Sasuke truly had no interest in her, which was foreign to the pink-haired girl's world.

Sasuke came walking up with his arms crossed. The brooder gave Naruto a hard stare. "Don't be late again dope."

Sakura was surprised, _'Is Sasuke defending me?'_ That thought had brightened Sakura's entire day.

Naruto glare moved from his female teammate to his male teammate. "And why should I, teme?"

Sakura smile turned to a frown. _'How dare you argue with Sasuke when he is defending his love, __Naruto!'_Sakura was about to voice those very thoughts, but Sasuke's next words brought everything in Sakura's world crashing down.

"When you're around, Sakura leaves me alone at times. She hasn't stopped bugging me today and it's annoying. If I have to be on you two weakling's team, then I would like to keep our interactions to missions and training." Sasuke stated with no emotion.

Sakura couldn't believe her ears; Sasuke had just called her annoying and weak. Sasuke was Pinkie's crush and here Sasuke was saying he didn't want to spend time with her, even telling Naruto to be around to suck up her time. _'Why? Why would he say something so cruel?' _It didn't cross her mind that she had called Naruto the same thing many times to his face.

Naruto could see how Sakura's face had fallen at Sasuke's words. Sakura was his crush and he would defend her with his life. "Watch what you say teme. Firstly, you got to spend time with Sakura-chan alone. She is smart, fun to be around, and beautiful. You should feel lucky to be around her. As for me being weak, I'll be more than happy to run that face of yours through the mud."

'_Naruto.'_ Once again Naruto surprised Sakura. The blond had come to his crushes rescue, while Sakura's crush degraded her. Sakura's mood wasn't lifted as much as Naruto had hoped, but Sakura wasn't looking down.

"Alright that's enough you two." In a swirl of leaves Kakashi was between the two boys. "Naruto, you shouldn't pick a fight with Sasuke, and Sasuke, you shouldn't say such things about your teammates."

"Maybe you should show up earlier so they don't get into fights." Anko said as she also showed up in a swirl of leaves.

Sakura, Sasuke, and Kakashi were surprised to see the purple haired Konohichi appear behind Kakashi. Naruto just smiled as he watched his nee-chan at work.

Kakashi turned around to meet Anko eye to eye. "Anko, it has been a while. How have you been?"

Anko gave her prey a toothy grin, "Good, I've been good. I ran into Haruhi and learned something rather interesting."

Kakashi knew that Anko was close to the fox. He was closer to Minato than Haruhi. When Kakashi received word that both Haruhi and Minato had died, Kakashi left to deal with the pain himself. He was no good to anyone for weeks and when he felt that he needed to check on Anko several months later, Anko was already gone to Area 44.

"And what would that be?" Kakashi asked. His danger-warning system was telling him to be on guard, but he wasn't going to jump to conclusions.

Anko leaned in and whispered, so as not to share the information with the other two genin, other than her otouto. "You knew Haruhi's son survived and didn't tell me."

'_That__ is why I had a feeling to run.'_ It was true that the second Kakashi laid an eye on Naruto; he knew the blond was Minato's son. He never once thought to tell Anko, but now that he thought it completely through, Kakashi realized that Anko would have been more than happy to make sure Naruto was safe. The Cyclops remembered how Anko was especially looking forward to having a younger sibling back then.

Quickly turning back around to his genin team, "You-guys-have-today-off. Tomorrow I'm-going-to-push-you-twice-as-hard-so-get-plenty-of-rest." With that, Kakashi was gone, leaves glided down from where he once stood.

"You're not getting away!" Now Anko was gone, chasing her prey.

"Who was that?" Sakura asked to no one in general.

"A very crazy lady." Naruto answered with a sigh and a smile.

Sakura and Sasuke looked over to Naruto. After a few seconds, Sasuke shrugged and started walking home. Sakura wanted to give chase, but Sasuke's words rang through her head and all Sakura wanted to do was cry.

Naruto turned to his crush, "Hey Sakura, you…"

"SHUT UP!!" Sakura snapped. "I just want to be alone." Sakura had completely forgot that Naruto had defended her. The pink haired girl started her walk home.

Naruto wasn't sure what he did, but thought better than to go after Sakura. She had just bitten off his head and he didn't want to infuriate her more. Naruto normally would have followed her and get Sakura to take her frustrations out on him. However she had never asked to be alone and he had never seen her that upset. Naruto made a note to get back at Sasuke for making Sakura upset.

Naruto watched his crush leave and decided to go home himself and see if Haruhi will teach him anything. As he started to head out he realized that he was heading the same direction as Sasuke. At first he didn't think much of it; Naruto just found it odd. That was until he saw a sign next to a compound with the words 'Uchiha Residence' and looking farther down, he saw the gates to his compound.

Naruto's jaw nearly hit the floor. _'I'm a neighbor with __Teme__!! How the hell did I miss that?'_ Naruto knew the village pretty well and this little revelation was pretty shocking to say the least. Naruto walked up and looked through the main gate to the Uchiha compound. All the buildings were Eastern and the symbol Sasuke wears on his back was on every building. It wasn't as pretty as the Uzumaki residence, but there were commercial shops, whereas the Uzumakis only had housing. In truth, the Uchiha was more of a small town within the village than a compound. Naruto also noticed how empty the place was. There wasn't a single person walking about the compound.

Naruto didn't step into the compound and after he got his look, he went home. He just couldn't believe he was a neighbor with that brooding ass. "Ka-chan I'm home." No answer.

Naruto walked around the mansion and could find anyone. "Ka-chan" Still no reply. _'Haruhi isn't in the house, I guess.'_ Naruto decided to check the back. The back yard was huge. It leads into some thick woods at the very back of the compound. The mansion had its own section for the head family, but there were paths for the other families to enter the woods if they wanted.

It didn't take Naruto long to find Haruhi talking to three foxes. They all were larger than a normal fox and at first Naruto thought they might be Kyuubis, but that was soon squashed as he noticed only one tail on each. Naruto tried to get closer without any of them noticing. He actually got pretty far before Haruhi's ears perked up.

"Naruto! You're back so soon. I thought you had training today." Haruhi asked curiously. Anko hadn't told the fox her plans to maim Kakashi.

Naruto scratched the back of his head; "I would be training if Anko-neechan wasn't chasing Kakashi-sensei all over the village."

Haruhi sighed, "She didn't?"

Naruto sighed also, "She did."

Haruhi motioned for naruto to come closer. "Well if that's the case then you get to hang out with me today." That actually brought a rather large smile to Haruhi's face. "Also I would like to introduce you to your new partners and partial trainers."

Naruto was confused. "Partners and trainers? I only see the three foxes."

The white fox walked over to Naruto and circled him once. "He doesn't seem like much, Haruhi-sama."

"IT TALKS!!!" Naruto nearly jumped ten feet. He was surprised to see one of Anko's snakes talk; now there were talking foxes. "What is going on?"

Haruhi giggled at her son actions. "Calm down Naruto. These are my family's summons. It is perfectly normal for a summon to talk. How else would they be able to communicate with the people that summon them?"

Naruto looked even more confused. "What is a summon?"

This time the orange fox stood. "If I may Haruhi-sama?" Haruhi nodded and the fox walked up to Naruto and sat down. "A summon is an animal that comes to aid the one who has signed the contract to summon it. So when a ninja signs the contract with foxes, that ninja can summon a fox to aid him in battle or do other thing that the ninja may need. Almost every animal has a summoning contract."

Naruto nodded in understanding. It wasn't that hard to comprehend. "So that was what Anko did when we were with the Old Man."

Haruhi was interested now. "What did Anko do?"

Naruto sighed, "Anko summoned this big snake called Raja and threatened to feed it one of the Old Man's orange books if he didn't approve for her to become my sister."

Haruhi had a dead panned expression till she burst out laughing. "That is so like Anko. I'm so glad she hasn't changed that much. So I take it the Hokage signed the paper?"

"I've never see a man go so white before in my entire life. I can't believe she did that to the Old Man. I mean he's old. He could have had a hard attack." Naruto was really worried about the Sarutobi. The blond knew he would be okay, but he still worried.

Haruhi was still laughing, "I'm sure the Hokage will live." Taking a few breaths to calm down. "Back to what I was saying. I've have summoned these three to help me train you and aid you should you get into a fight. The Hokage gave me a book that outlined all the things that a clan had to do. The book is this thick, it is ridiculous." Haruhi made an over exaggerated show with her arms. Haruhi made it look like it was 3 feet thick. In reality it was only a half a foot.

"So I won't be able to train you to the extent I had hoped." Naruto looked down. He had hoped that Haruhi would teach him a lot of cool things. "However I still plan to teach you some things and with Anko and the three right here. I think we can make you a ninja that will be wanted everywhere else."

Naruto looked up with a smile. "Really, how big do you think the reward will be for beating me?"

Haruhi gave her son the biggest smile she could. "The number will be too big to even count."

"Don't get cocky brat. You still have a long ways to go and if you can't survive my training then your never going to make it in the real world." The black fox finally said while walking up to Naruto.

Naruto looked at the three foxes. The white fox started to rub herself against Naruto. Naruto wasn't sure what was going on at first, but let the fox do whatever she was doing. "My name is Luna and I'll teach you better chakra control and genjutsu."

Naruto smiled at the fox, "Cool." Then the smile was gone. "Uh…what are you doing?"

"I'm marking you." Luna said as if it was normal for a large fox to rub herself against you.

"Oh," Was all naruto could say.

The orange fox moved up and bowed to Naruto. "It is an honor to meet Haruhi-sama's heir. My name is Blaze. I'll be teaching you all the jutsus at my disposal. In battle my power allows me to give my chakra so you can perform jutsus much easier and with less chakra. Naruto-sama, use me as you wish."

Naruto had never been called Sama before at it felt weird. "Just call me Naruto and thank you for helping me."

The black fox gave Naruto a hard stare as if he was looking down on him. It was a little funny considering he was looking up. "I'm sensei to you brat and I'll be teaching you better taijutsu. You'll have to earn my respect."

Naruto bowed to the fox. It was odd, but for some reason it felt right. "I never give up, for that is my nindo"

The fox seemed to approve of that comment. "We'll see brat. We'll see."

"Wait…you can make me stronger by just fighting with me?" Naruto asked to his new partners.

Blaze nodded, "That is correct Naruto-sa…Naruto. Luna will make jutsus easier to use and allow you to perform them without hand seals."

"Coooool," By this time naruto was scratching one of Luna's ears, which the white fox loved. "So what do you do?" Naruto used his free had to point to the black fox.

The black fox gave a toothy grin that was a little creepy. "You'll find out later, but right now I don't plan on helping you any time soon."

"Come on…I won't tell anyone." Naruto started to beg.

"Forget it brat. You're just making my training harder." The black fox yelled back.

Haruhi sat back and watched the whole interaction. She had known these three since they were pups. They were all loyal to the Kyuubi clan and knew that they would do there best to make Naruto a strong ninja. "For today though I get to train you. Blaze, Luna, Storm, make yourselves at home since you'll be staying." The three foxes bowed to Haruhi and left to go find a room to claim.

Naruto watched them go. "It will be weird learning from foxes."

Haruhi gave her son a sideways look, "Does that mean I'm weird for teaching you."

Naruto panicked "No, no Ka-chan it isn't weird."

Haruhi was just playing with her baby, but that was quickly forgotten. "What did you say?"

"It…isn't weird." Naruto said with uncertainty.

"Before that." Haruhi was listening intently.

"No…no…ka-chaaaaaaaa." Naruto was on his back with Haruhi on top.

"You called me Ka-chan. You really called me mom. That makes me so happy." There were tears of joy and Haruhi was squeezing Naruto to death with the bear hug she was giving.

"Ka…chan…can't…breath…" Naruto got out with gasps of air.

Haruhi completely ignored him and squeezed harder. "I love you so much. You called me ka-chan."

Naruto didn't realize that she would be this happy at one simple word and he was happy to make her happy, but at the same time Naruto wished he had never said ka-chan.

"Seriously…can't…breath."

Naruto fought for survival for five minutes. The blond wasn't sure how he did it, but he was alive. Now he was sitting crossed-legged in front of Haruhi and the fox was also sitting cross-legged.

Haruhi was watching her son. This would probably be the most important lesson she would ever teach him. "Naruto, today I'm not going to teach you any jutsu or moves." Naruto looked disappointed. "Today I'm going to teach you what you really should fight for."

Naruto flatly, didn't get it. "What do you mean?"

Haruhi had a serious look. "Naruto why do you want to be a ninja, why do you fight?"

Naruto wasn't sure where this was going, but saw no reason not to answer. "I want to become the Hokage. That way everyone in the village will like me and acknowledge me. It never give up and I never beak a promise that is my nindo, my ninja way."

Haruhi sat quietly for a little bit and let all of Naruto's words settle. "Naruto, your nindo is a good nindo. To never give up may be foolish, but is still an admirable think. To never break a promise is also an admirable. Your word is your bond for a kyuubi and I expect no less from you." Naruto smiled and was proud at what Haruhi had just said.

"However your goal is sad." Naruto smile was gone. "You want to be Hokage just so everyone will like you. Naruto, son, not even your father could do that."

Naruto was shocked. Minato was a hero. "What do you mean? The Fourth gave his life for the village. How can someone not like him?"

Haruhi sighed, "The position of Hokage is not easily obtained. First you have to rise in the ninja ranks as not only powerful, but also wise, and popular. You must be able to lead men into battle without fear, even if that means leading them to their deaths. You will deal with other people just as powerful politically. Politics is battles of words, which even most Kyuubis, have trouble with. It takes years of experience or raw talent to out maneuver hardened politicians. You don't do all of that without making some enemies both outside and in Konoha. Your father, the First, Second, and Third Hokages all had enemies that seek to over through them."

Naruto jaw was hanging open. "The old Man has enemies. He is kind to everyone."

Haruhi continued, "Some people see that kindness as a weakness for the Hokage. Some believe that the Hokage should be cold and heartless." Naruto was shocked. He never saw the old Man's kindness as a weakness. "Naruto if you want to be Hokage, you must learn fast. Everything you learn and experience will put you one step ahead of the competition."

"Competition?" Naruto asked.

Haruhi giggled, "You don't think you're the only one wanting to be Hokage, do you?" Naruto blushed in embarrassment. "You will need to know how to follow orders and give them. You will have to know how to save lives and how to take them. You must remember that not everyone can be saved. You are going to need to be much smarter and much wiser. You must be willing to send people you care about into the heart of the danger, even when it is suicide and be willing to do things others won't. You also need to calm down. A hyper active Hokage is looked down upon. It is okay sometimes, but most of the time it is a bad thing."

Naruto took all of it in, "I didn't realize that it took so much. I always thought that the Hokage was such a great job, but now."

Haruhi didn't want to scare him from his dream, but he needed to know. "Tell me Naruto, after everything I have just told you. Do you still wish to be Hokage? And know that this is just the tip of the ice burg. Hokage is a position of leadership, which means it is a position of responsibility. The main mission of Hokage is to ensure the safety of everyone living in Konoha, even the ones that don't like you."

Naruto thought it over long and hard. Did he want all that? Then his father went through his mind. His father sacrificed himself and his son to protect the village. Minato had given his life and son for the village. That was what it meant to be Hokage. Naruto realized that to be Hokage meant sacrifice, but it also meant he could protect the ones he cared about. Ayame-neechan, Teuchi-jisan, Iruka-sensei, Old Man, and now Anko-neechan, and Ka-chan, Naruto could protect them better if he was Hokage.

Naruto looked into Haruhi's with a new fire. "I will be Hokage to protect all the people I care about. All the things you said I needed, I'll learn. I'll be the best Hokage ever and nothing will stop me."

Haruhi smiled at her son. She was so proud of him. "Come on, it is almost lunch time. Let me make you something. You also need to get to know your new senseis. I would also like to learn more about you."

This time it was Naruto's turn to smile. "Sure thing ka-chan, but I do have one question. Did you know we are neighbors to the teme?"

Haruhi knew Naruto was talking about Uchiha Sasuke. That was the only person he ever called teme. "Yes I did. By the way, after lunch we need to go shopping for new clothes."

"Why?" Naruto was almost to scared to ask.

"Because we are having company tomorrow and your beat up jumpsuit and Anko's see through mesh are not going to cut it." Haruhi said very motherly.

Naruto groaned, _'Why me? At least Anko is coming too. That reminds me, how is Kakashi-sensei is doing?'_

Said instructor was hanging upside down completely tied up to prevent escape, over a pit of snakes. Anko had refrained from tying him up by his balls and was placing a candle below the rope that was holding Kakashi up. It was only a matter of time before the fire burned through the rope.

"Come on Anko. Aren't you going a bit far?" Kakashi pleaded.

"No, you knew about my otouto and didn't tell me. You're not the only one who will get it. I let the Hokage go today because he signed the adoption papers, but tomorrow he is going to get it." Anko said with a maniacal laugh to finish.

Kakashi was praying to his Ichi Ichi gods for salvation, but his prayers were going unanswered. _'Why me?'_ was his only thought as part of the rope snapped.

Narilyte, thank you for reading my story and reviewing. I'll answer your questions as best I can in return.

**Your first question weather Kyuubi's chakra is different from Naruto's fox chakra. Yes it is and that topic will be better explained later. Sometime after he gets back from the wave mission.**

**No Kyuubi doesn't have a name yet. I'm really bad at thinking up names and the longer I can delay it. The better for me.**

**As for the spelling the names wrong. You are most likely correct. I got most of my spelling from other fan-fics. I'm plan on keeping the spelling the same though. The son mistake was me and by the time I realized the mistake I had 2 chapters out. If you notice I stopped using son and I will correct that in future chapters.**

**Lastly I would like to thank you greatly for your suggestion to get more reviews. The only problem is that I would use the love interest name and I'm still would like to keep that quiet. I will put Naruto though. Thank you.**


	6. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.**

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Naruto was walking through a clothing store with his mother and Anko, and suffice to say, it was hell.

Haruhi was trying to get him to wear some clothes that were clearly meant for 4 year olds. The fox's exact words were, "Just put them on so I can take a picture! I miss this part and I would really like something close. No one will see, I swear!"

Anko was snickering in the back. She would've laughed out loud if it weren't for a certain pink dress, complete with pink ribbons to tie one's hair back. This was something Haruhi was clearly eyeballing and set off Anko's alarms like a claymore.

On the other side, Haruhi was starting to get quite annoyed with her children. For instance, they passed on everything they found. "Come on you two. We have company later today and I would like them to see you in things other than hooker clothes…"

"Hey!!" Anko shouted out, drawing several stares and an obnoxious chuckle from Naruto.

"And bright orange rags."

"Hey!!" Naruto echoed, drawing more scowls and a snicker from Anko.

"Now I'm done trying to get you in cute little clothes. Just go pick something." Haruhi sighed.

_'You tried to get us in baby clothes,'_ was the shared thought of the newly-made siblings as they started to walk around.

Later on, Naruto found a bright yellow shirt and pants with black strips running down the sides, to which Haruhi thoroughly denied and 'next-ed'. For Anko herself, a small tank top and some cut off jeans. While Haruhi had to admit it was an improvement from her normally near naked outfit, the kyuubi didn't want to accidentally kill any of the male guests from blood loss if there were any.

"This is pointless. You two can't pick anything normal." Haruhi sighed and placed her head in her hand.

"Well maybe if you tried to help without trying to get us to diapers and bibs…." Anko countered.

Haruhi sighed again, sounding a little pouty. "I just wanted to live as if you guys were little again."

"I was in my teens when we first met!" Anko yelped. Her frustration was also mounting; Haruhi had said 'no' to all of her choices, all for reasons that, frankly, she didn't really give a damn about!

In the meanwhile, Naruto had already walked away from the two semi-insane bickering women.

Off on his own, Naruto was hoping to find something he himself would like, but would also fit Haruhi's description of 'no bright colors', unreasonable, to him anyways, though it may be. Unfortunately, he wasn't really having any luck. To top it off, he was henged; the three already had gone to two other stores and had received less than hospitable treatment. Admittedly, some of it was for Anko, but most of it was obviously for Naruto.

Being overcharged 4 times the normal amount had pissed the women off to no end. The only reason they bought anything was because, to put it nicely, they were rolling in money.

Naruto suggested having himself henge-ed so as to prevent any more trouble. Anko didn't like the idea, what with the fact that she never hid from anyone and she believed Naruto should do the same. Haruhi on the other hand, after thinking the whole thing over, agreed with her son, and promptly placed a powerful henge over him. Thus, Naruto was currently a dark haired boy with brown eyes. Admittedly, Haruhi needed to conserve her chakra so that she could more easily defend her home from anyone wanting to attack the Uzumaki's, but this was for possible allies for later. Give a little now and get a lot later was what Haruhi was going by. Naruto could also have henged himself, but in a ninja village, most store venders could see through henge at genin level. After all, it was natural to learn of that ability to protect their goods. A henge under Haruhi, however, would need a high level genjutsu specialist to break.

Fairly soon though, the act of trying on clothes became pointless when it came to seeing if he looked good in them. He hadn't really found anything that he liked in the other stores. Haruhi had made him buy some clothes that he could wear to nice, formal occasions though. She had also talked to him about changing his clothes to a less "see you in the dark" and to more "stealthy as a cat." Not to be left out, Anko too received some nicer clothes that Haruhi had picked out.

Naruto was walking near the back when he saw something familiar. The henged boy walked over to investigate. Curiously, the clothes had a section all to themselves.

Naruto was currently in an all-purpose clothing store. It had a little of everything, however this style was meant for ninja that did the heavier fighting. These clothes were not from Konoha, nor the Fire Country for that matter.

To be specific, the style was camouflage fatigues. There were trousers, shirts, coats, even underwear with all different patterns and all different colors, for any terrain, and the shoes that were on display in the area were steel-toed, all-terrain boots.

Thinking back on a past memory, he realized the girl that gave him the blue necklace wore plain clothes like this. That is what he remembered and why everything seemed familiar.

Naruto had seen clothes like this before in other stores, but every time he went in to look around, he was promptly kicked out. The orange jump suit he wore now was something he found; the blond usually couldn't afford anything in the stores that let him in. Soon, he found that these were the only clothes other than bright neon colors that he had an interest in.

As the disguised blond looked around, a tall black haired man walked over to him. "Like what you see, young man?" The man's voice was gruff and his face was scared. Naruto didn't recognize him as one of the men that had physically kicked him out of one of the shops.

Using the nicest voice he could, he asked, "Sir could you tell me about these clothes? I've never seen them before." That was obviously a lie, but you really couldn't say that you had been kicked out of every store that had them.

The man smiled at seeing a possible customer, as well as for the opportunity to boast of his products. "That's because they were made in Grass Country. These are battle-ready uniforms. They were made to last in any environment, and will provide fairly decent protection to the wearer. The camouflage gives the wearer better concealment too. I should know; when I was a ninja, I wore these clothes. They kept me warm in the winter and cool in the summer."

The man's smile was gone by this part. "I tried selling them here, but most of the ninja stick with Konoha uniforms after they reach chunin. My shop closed down and if it wasn't for this shop being willing to take me in, I don't know what I would have done."

Predictably, Naruto felt sorry for the man after hearing that part of the man's story. He can't help it; it's who he is, honest! Naruto also couldn't help but wonder and wanted to hear more about the man's ninja life. The man was in his early thirties and should still be working as a ninja. "Sir, why aren't you a ninja anymore?"

The man sighed and closed his eyes, replying, "When I was younger, I sustained a major injury at the hands of a Hyuuga… I can no longer access my charka. I was a Grass Nin at the time. I don't bear a grudge though. It was a job for both of us. We were just on opposite sides, and he was the better fighter."

Naruto absorbed that information, letting it ring throughout his head. _'It was a job, nothing more.'  
_  
"Sir, what happened?"

The man looked Naruto up and down as if deciding the boy deserved to hear the story.

Seeing the metal plate on Naruto's forehead, the man made a decision, "I was sent to get a scroll. At the time, Konoha also sent a Hyuuga to claim that same scroll. It had an S-rank jutsu on it. I was… overconfident, I had never lost at close combat and assumed that that would be the case against the Hyuuga. On that day, I learned the hard way why Hyuuga's are close combat specialists. Luckily, our nations were allies at the time so I lost my career, not my life. Never underestimate your opponent is my advice to you, that and lose the orange."

Naruto made a face, annoyed at the man for calling out his clothes, but still took his advice to heart. Haruhi had told Naruto to see everything as a possible lesson and everyone as a possible teacher. This man was a clear lesson on an outcome that may pass if Naruto ever got too high on himself.

Having nothing else to say about the man's story, Naruto decided to get back to the clothes. "How much would a set cost?"

"Tell you what kid, follow me." The man started to walk to the back with Naruto in tow. They went through some doors and into a storage room. "I got these when I was younger from my parents when I first became a ninja." The man said as he reached for a box.

The man pulled out a set of camo-fatigues and handed them to Naruto. They were 'desert', with a light brown undershirt and steel toe boots. Naruto didn't think much of it till the man gave him instructions. "Think of a snow field and put chakra into the clothes."

Naruto did as he was told and soon was more than surprised. The color and the pattern changed to match the snowfield he was thinking about. The undershirt and boots were now a light blue, almost white.

"Cool huh kid? They're one of a kind. You listened to my story, so I'll give these to you. If you don't like them or they don't fit, bring them back." The man told Naruto as he retrieved a smoke from one of his pockets.

Naruto wasn't sure why he was given these clothes. The man's story wasn't particularly long or grand. It felt like a brief definition. Regardless Naruto put the clothes back in the box and turned to face the man. "Thank you very much." Naruto bowed, sincerely grateful to the man for his gift.

"Hey now, none of that. I'm just helping out a young ninja. Once it is in your blood it never leaves you. My time has passed. If I can help someone else become a great ninja, then that is all I can do. Come back when they don't fit anymore. Ask for Kotatsu." The man said as he got up and started to walk out.

Naruto didn't know what to say. He was given a valuable gift; one that, had his mother not found him, he would have treasured for the rest of his life. Naruto grabbed the box and left the store to find his mother and sister. Unsurprisingly, he found them arguing still. He figured that Anko was probably buying time so she wouldn't have to buy new clothes. "Kaa-chan, I got something that 'isn't neon' like you said. So let's go."

Haruhi quickly turned to her son, "What are you talking about? We haven't even gone to your section yet."

Naruto held up the box for Haruhi to see, "I'll show you later, but a nice man gave me these clothes, so I don't need to buy any."

Needles to say, Haruhi wasn't happy at all about that information. Not only did her son walk off with some stranger, but she didn't even notice his disappearing act the entire time he was gone. Apparently, arguing with Anko took up all her focus. Real fear shot through her as several possible outcomes soared through her imagination.

"Okay" was all Haruhi could say in light of her absolute failure to her son. At least that was how the fox felt.

Meanwhile, Anko was in the background, doing a small dance of victory at not having to buy clothes.

The walk home was quiet when compared to the trek earlier that morning. Both Naruto and Anko had noticed Haruhi's melancholy. Both had tried to lighten the mood; however, Haruhi was in her own little world.

They were walking through the compound and were almost to the door when suddenly, Haruhi stopped. Anko and Naruto froze in their tracks, looked questioningly at each other, and then back at Haruhi.

"Naruto did you know the man you went with?" Haruhi finally asked not turning around to look at him.

Naruto looked confused. He look to Anko for answers, but received none. Turning back, "Not at first, but he called himself Kotatsu. He was…"

Naruto was cut short as Haruhi whirled around. "That doesn't MATTER!!! What if he was planning to kidnap you; hurt you, or worse?" Haruhi had a look of fear in her eyes, her fingers clenched until her knuckles were white. It was clear that the whole thing had upset her greatly.

Anko stepped forward to defend her little brother, "Oi Kaa-chan, he's a ninja. Naruto can handle himself. Not to mention he's been…" Anko quickly decided not to finish the fact that Naruto had been alone for a long time now, but regardless, Haruhi caught it, and it didn't help matters at all.

"Kaa-chan, Nee-chan is right. I can take care of myself!" Naruto pleaded to his mother. He had spent years being alone, at the mercy of a lot of strangers. He went through a lot while alone. Granted, Naruto did have a paranoid side concerning strangers, but most of the time Naruto could feel when someone was untrustworthy. There were only a few occasions where his gut failed him, and the second to last one didn't count! At least, that's what he tells himself anyways.

Haruhi, on the other hand was a new mother. Anko was already a well-trained genin, almost chunin by the time Haruhi met her and the kyuubi didn't really have to watch her. Naruto on the other hand, was just starting his ninja career, and to be honest… Naruto was her flesh and blood. Anko wasn't. Yes Haruhi would kill to protect Anko, but she couldn't lie to herself that if she had to chose between the two. Naruto would always be picked.

Haruhi walked up to her son and lightly placed her arms around his neck. "Listen to me. You are not alone anymore. There are people who care about you now. If something happened to you, I don't know what I would do." She whispered into her son's ear.

Anko heard what Haruhi had said, and while she agreed with the fox. At the same time it was a little over protective of a boy who really could take care of himself.

Naruto didn't know what to do, so he just stood there.

"Okay Kaa-chan," he finally sighed. "I'll be more careful. I promise." That was the best he could come up with at the time.

On her part, Anko made a mental note to talk with Haruhi about this later. It wouldn't be good for Haruhi to act like this every time Naruto was in any form of danger, considering he was a ninja of Konoha.

What both Anko and Naruto didn't realize was that Haruhi was still upset about the 12 year jump, and that everything that she has lost was still in the back of her mind. To put it simply, if there was a chance that she could lose anything else, Haruhi would go insane with grief and heartbreak. The only thing holding her together was Naruto; mostly.

Haruhi let go of Naruto and gave the boy a heartfelt smile. "Thank you. Now let's go get ready for the party."

With a forced smile Haruhi walked into the mansion. Naruto and Anko looked at each other, not quite sure how to take what had just happened. Anko had already begun thinking on how to bring up the conversation at a later time. Naruto took it at the face value of a worried mother.

"Come on Nee-chan, Kaa-chan must really want this party." Naruto said as he walked into the mansion.

Anko sighed and followed. As the purple haired ninja walked in, she was greeted with the sight of one fox bowing to Naruto, one kicking him, and another lying lazily on top of him.

"Brat, how are you supposed to become a Hokage if you can't even avoid a simple ambush?" Storm demanded as he delived another kick to Naruto's face.

"Naruto-sama, though I disagree with his choice of words, I must agree with Storm. That wasn't even a good ambush and you fell right into it." Blaze stated with his head still bowed.

"Both of you knock it off. We haven't even trained him for a day, and from what I've heard, the academy hasn't done anything for Naruto-kun." Luna stated while trying to find a more comfortable spot on her new pupil.

Naruto just grumbled as Anko nearly fell over from laughing. After a little work, Naruto was able to stagger back to his feet and get upstairs. He was followed by Luna to his room. Blaze and Strom left to their own rooms and figure out exactly how they were going to train Naruto.

Anko saw this as a good time to talk with Haruhi and left to find her. It didn't take long as the smell from the kitchen led Anko right to Haruhi.

"Good, it seems it didn't over-cook," stated Haruhi. She had started cooking before they left and left the meat in the oven to roast.

Anko looked around and was pleasantly surprised to see dango. She was about to make a move for her favorite treat when Haruhi stopped her in her tracks.

"Anko… if you don't leave that dango alone until the party, I'm going to make sure that it is the last dango you'll ever get..." Haruhi said in a sing song voice without turning around and not stopping her cooking.

Normally, Anko would still go for the dango, to hell with what other people say! If only it wasn't Haruhi. Haruhi was anything but normal and Anko believed Haruhi could full fill her threat. Anko did however find this to be a good opportunity to start a conversation; one that she knew would upset Haruhi.

"How can you know exactly what I'm going to do without looking… but still lose Naruto?" Anko was right about upsetting Haruhi, because Haruhi then promptly stopped what she was doing and with glowing red eyes, turned to face Anko.

"Excuse me?"

Anko swallowed a large ball of saliva and pressed on, hoping she would live to see tomorrow. Choosing her words more carefully than her last statement, "You do realize Naruto isn't 4 or 5, right? He is a genin of Konoha. He is trained to deal with dangerous people, and kill, if he has to. Why were you so upset about him talking with a stranger?"

Up to that point, Haruhi had been ready to bite Anko's head off, literally …but she did bring up a good point. Even Haruhi wasn't sure why she acted like that. In her head, she knew Naruto was probably more prepared to deal with 'shit-hitting-the-fan', better than any of the other genin. However, her heart screamed that she had really, really messed up.

Haruhi took a deep breath and turned back to her cooking. "I don't know. He's a ninja and for some reason when I think about him taking a mission, I don't get to worried. But just then, as he came back saying he had a whole conversation with a stranger… And the biggest thing being that I didn't notice… I…I just don't know."

Anko took in what Haruhi said. Anko knew that this needed to come out now, before Naruto left for any mission. "I hate to say this, but Naruto has been through more than even me. He probably knows how to hide, run, sneak, avoid, and detect better than anyone. He would have too, with the life he's had."

Haruhi wasn't happy with all the skills Anko just listed. Those were the skills of prey surviving against predators.

"I know, please don't remind me," the words barely above a whisper.

Anko knew she was hurting her mother, but it had to be done and this question had to be asked. "What do you think he'll be in on a real mission, when he is fighting men with swords and knives? What do you think he will be in when he faces another shinobi?"

Haruhi slammed the plate she was holding on the ground, shattering it.

"I KNOW, ALRIGHT! I CAN'T BE FREAKING OUT EVERY TIME HE MAY BE IN TROUBLE!" She was breathing hard and was fighting back tears. Her hands were clenched.

In a much quieter voice, "I lost track of him. I've never lost track of anyone and he does it without trying. How am I supposed to make everything up to him when I can't even track him? I'm a kyuubi and I can't keep track of my little pup." The tears were right there, but Haruhi had cried enough and she refused to continue today. "I don't want to lose my son."

Anko was a little worried that Naruto had heard all that commotion, but he never came to investigate.

Anko walked over to Haruhi and wrapped her arms around her mother. "Naruto has survived this long even with the village against him. He is if anything, very tough. I think he will be a great ninja. Even after everything, otouto still smiles like a 5 year old. And his life will no longer be full of just shit-heads and assholes anymore. We will be there for him."

Haruhi however, knew that those smiles were fake. She had missed it at first, but now… now she can see it as clear as day. Naruto very rarely ever gave a real smile. The ones he shows the world were a mask for the pain he hid inside. Haruhi knew better. In that moment, in that very kitchen, Haruhi made the decision not to tell Anko the truth. At least not yet.

Haruhi then proceeded to pull a Naruto and gave Anko a fake smile. It was passable enough, and Anko bought it. Anko let go of her mother. "I'm going to get ready for your party, and then I'll talk with Naruto and make sure he understands what happened." _'Why can't things be simpler like torturing? That is a simple thing I'm good at.'  
_  
Haruhi just nodded and went to cleaning up the broken glass as Anko left for her room. Haruhi waited for Anko to leave completely before she let go of her smile. _'Naruto, please don't leave me.'  
_______________________________________________________________________

Naruto was standing in front of his full length mirror. Another thing he thought he would never have. Looking over his formal outfit, it was simple slacks and a button up shirt, both were black. He had nice dress shoes as well.

"Why do I have to wear this? It is tight around the neck." The blond complained, fiddling with the collar. _'Dammit, this thing feels like a choker…'  
_  
"Then undo a few buttons Naruto-kun. Haruhi-sama told you what to wear, not how to wear it." Luna replied, who, incidentally, was lying on Naruto's bed. The white fox was merely observing her new pupil.

Prior to the Uzumaki's arrival, the 3 foxes that were now training Naruto made an accord. That is, before Naruto could be taught anything of any real usage, the blond needed a better foundation. That meant that Luna was the primary teacher till Naruto's charka-control was actually adequate for anything. Luna had taken that as a reason to get close to Naruto, which she was taking great pleasure in.

Luna was the youngest of Haruhi's attendants, back before the key was passed down to Haruhi. Haruhi had of course treated Luna more as a friend than a servant. Luna very much appreciated that. Being a servant for a kyuubi could be taxing at times for the other servants. Luna had, at a young age, found a mate, but she was too young to give birth without complications. If it wasn't for Haruhi, Luna would have lost all 7 kits, not 4. Luna owed everything to Haruhi and was more than willing to make it up through Naruto.

It was sad that Luna lost everything when Haruhi's brother went for the key. Luna's entire family was killed in the crossfire between Kyuubi's. Luna saw a lot of her mate in Naruto. The fox would keep that to herself though.

Naruto looked over to the fox. "But what if Kaa-chan doesn't like it that way?" Naruto was doing all of this for Haruhi, after all. If he had a choice, he would be training right now.

"I'm sure Haruhi-sama will be pleased either way. Now let's see… hair good, clothes good, shoes good, appetite…" Naruto's stomach answered with a gurgle. "-good. I think we're ready. Now remember, eat with some manners!"

Luna saw how Naruto ate their first dinner together, and knew his eating habits were definitely going to be one of the first things to change, make no mistake about it!

Naruto grumbled as all three foxes and Haruhi nagged at him about that, even though Anko was the same and they left her alone. The blond's mother had already said that there wasn't going to be any ramen; but if he was good, Haruhi said that Naruto could have all the ramen he wanted after the party.

The door to his room flew open, "Otouto, you in here?" Anko sang as she busted the door open. Naruto had a kunai in his hand and was in a fighting stance. Anko looked Naruto up and down and tried not to laugh. Naruto's stance for fighting was poor at best, and now with the restricting clothes, it was downright atrocious.

Luna just laid there on the bed, watching with a raised eyebrow.

"If you think that's a fighting stance, then you should quit before a 4 year old playing ninja challenges you." Anko smile was from ear to ear.

Naruto dropped his stance and pointed a finger at Anko. "Knock next time! What if I was naked?!"

Anko crossed her arms while her smile grew. "You've been in your room for half an hour. I got dressed in 5 minutes. Besides, you think that I would care?" Anko emphasized the 'I' with an arm directing at her chest.

Naruto grumbled and finally took a look at Anko. After which he forced himself to remember that she was his sister. To be brief, Anko was wearing the little black dress.

"I thought Kaa-chan said 'less revealing'."

Anko looked over herself. "It is." Naruto rolled his eyes. Anko walked up and sat on the bed next to Luna. "Naruto, you know why Kaa-chan was acting the way she did outside?"

Naruto scratched the back of his head. "Kaa-chan was worried about me. Isn't that what should happen? I think I scared her pretty badly."

Anko nodded, "She was really scared. I don't think she has ever been that scared before."

Naruto had a confused look on his face. "Why? She didn't even know I was gone till I got back to you two."

"That's the point. You know she's a kyuubi, and that means she can pretty much do anything, right?" Naruto nodded; after all, that fact wasn't exactly hard to follow. "Kaa-chan lost track of you without realizing it. That probably has never happened to her before, ever. It was a major shock, and it frightened the hell out of her. That's the best way I can put it."

Naruto scratched the back of his head again. He understood, but didn't know what to do with the information. Anko reached over and grabbed his hand. "I already talked with Kaa-chan about this. Just make sure she knows you care."

Naruto only nodded to that.

Then Anko smiled at him, while Naruto's warning senses went into over drive. Before he knew it, Anko pulled Naruto into a head lock and started to noogie him.

"Good, now let's go say hi to the guests." Not even stopping her power-noogie, Anko got up and went down stairs with Naruto in her armpit. Naruto struggled the whole way, with muffled cries of 'Let me go dammit!' being heard and subsequently ignored. Luna just followed the two with a smirk.  
______________________________________________________________________

There were no guest as of yet, but they would be at the door-step soon. Haruhi was able to quickly clean herself up. No one, other than Anko, would know of Haruhi's break down. Haruhi made some shadow clones to continue the cooking while she went up to get dressed.

Anko had let Naruto go on the couch. Naruto was about to go into a rant about crazy older sisters, but was cut short when Anko offered to teach him spots on the human body to aim for in a fight. The lesson didn't need any major physical movements, so Anko figured it was a good place to start, while wearing formal wear.

It didn't take much longer for the first guest to arrive. Haruhi was down stairs in a solid white kimono to answer the door. As Haruhi opened the door, Kiba, Akamaru, Hana, Tsume, and Kuromaru were waiting. Hana had left her dogs at home. Kiba was wearing something similar to Naruto, only in a lighter shade and with a jacket. Hana was wearing a red kimono while Tsume was wearing a blue kimono. "Greetings Lady Haruhi from the Inuzuka clan, thank you for inviting us to your home. It is an honor that you have invited us." Tsume said as all three Inuzukas and their dogs bowed.

Haruhi sighed, "Please stop that. I still haven't read that part of the tomb-stone they call a book."

Tsume just smiled, "That book is the biggest waste of paper. Don't worry about it, I still haven't read the whole thing. I learned most of what I know through watching others."

Haruhi motioned for the dog lovers to come in. Kiba just stared opened mouthed at the insides of the mansion. Kiba had never really been to a place like this before. Both the Abrume and the Hyuuga had eastern style compounds and were not furnished in this fashion. Hana was a veteran ninja like Anko. They were in the same academy class together. Hana had seen places like this before on a much grander scale. The same went with Tsume, but that was a long time ago.

As they walked into the living room they saw Naruto holding his arm. "That hurts nee-chan." Haruhi was about to go to her son and ask if Naruto was alright, but that idea was cut short when Naruto stuck the arm he was holding out for Anko.

"Okay nee-chan; show me where to hit one more time." Anko smiled and was about to show Naruto a pressure point on the arm, that if hit with enough force could temporarily paralyze the arm, until Haruhi interrupted.

"What do you think you're doing Anko, and Naruto why would you let someone hurt you?"

Anko shrugged and answered for the both of them. "He wanted to know how to paralyze an arm and showing is always better than telling." Naruto just nodded his head in agreement.

Haruhi was seriously thinking that her children were a little more than messed up in the head.  
_'They do have a similar history.'_ Haruhi shook her head to clear herself of such thoughts. Turning to the Inuzuka's and their dogs, "Make yourselves at home. I'll go get some refreshments."

Haruhi left for the kitchen and left Naruto and Anko to entertain the dog lovers. Luna, Storm, Blaze had decided to stay out of the party. Mostly so unwanted questions weren't asked.

Kiba looked over to Naruto and was more than a little shocked to see him.

Tsume hadn't told Kiba anything about this open house. Hana was next in line for clan leader though, so she regularly talked with her mother to learn and become aware of what was going on in the village and its developments. Thus, Hana herself knew about the Uzumaki clan and, as proper for the heir of the Inuzuka clan, saw a potential ally for later down the road.

Kiba however, was still relatively new to the whole 'clan relations' process. He wasn't the heir, so it wasn't mandatory for him to go to any formal events, major or minor. The only reason he was there now was because Tsume had thought he got along with Naruto…Shows how little she really knew, don't it?

"Hey Naruto, what are you doing here? Did they hire you to work here?" Kiba asked tactlessly, as if nothing was wrong with the question.

Naruto gave him a confused look. "What are you talking about? I'm a ninja and I live here."

Unbeknownst to either of them, the others were also listening in; they just happened to be better at keeping quiet than either of the two twits. Though seriously, have they never heard of subtly? Actually, scratch that. Just look at who we're talking about here.

Kiba's jaw just dropped. "You live here?! How did you manage that? I figured you gave up at being a ninja."

"Why would you think that? I am wearing a head band." Naruto stated while pointing at his Haiti-ate.

Kiba shrugged, "Figured you realized that you weren't cut out to be a ninja."

"Kiba…." Tsume was not happy with her son. "That was rude; apologize to Naruto. We are his guests." Tsume was always one to be blunt, but even that was just stupid to say, particularly in this environment. Hana just stood back and watched, for nothing better than to see what would come out of her little brother's rashness.

Kiba sighed, "I apologize, Naruto. That was uncalled for." Kiba's tone and smirk however, suggested otherwise.

Anko was ready to kill the boy with a dog on his head, hopefully not literally, but with her, you never know. No one insulted her little brother and gets away with it, but before she could say anything Naruto opened his mouth. "It's alright. I'll just beat this baka in a fight and prove who the better ninja is." Naruto had a wicked smile aimed at Kiba.

Anko was about to cry, she was so proud of her little monster of a brother for not taking any crap!

Kiba didn't care enough about this party to stay civil, especially with Naruto. "Ohh yeah, we'll see who's the better ninja." Akamaru was in agreement with his master and bark at Naruto a few times. Hana just watched with amusement at the two boys. Tsume on the other hand was slowly and methodically thinking up all the ways to punish Kiba for what he was doing.

Naruto was about to go on, but a loud "NARUTO!" stopped him in his tracks. Naruto looked up to see Haruhi standing in the door way with the refreshments. "What are you doing!?"

Naruto knew he was in very deep shit. "Ha ha…Kaa-chan…I was…"

"You were picking a fight with a guest. Not just any guest either, you picked a fight with the son of a clan head. Tell me Naruto, how is picking fights going to lead you to become Hokage?" Haruhi's tone was rather cold.

Naruto had to learn how to be proper if he wanted to be Hokage. He didn't have to be that way all the time though. Far from it, Haruhi hated proper people, but something like this party would be good practice, especially if the blond was going to be in a clan as heir.

Kiba just smiled thinking he won this round, until he looked at his mother. Tsume leaned over with scary, narrow eyes. "You will be cleaning the dog pens for a month." Kiba made as if to say something, but the look on her face told him to keep his mouth shut or he was even more screwed than he was right now.

Haruhi bowed to Tsume, "I apologize for my son's actions."

Tsume also bow, "It is alright. I too must apologize for my son." Both women took a quick glance at their respective sons, causing both Naruto and Kiba to gulp.

With that, and a passing look between them that said "This isn't over bastard!" the two boys decided it would be best to remain quiet for a while or at least until they're out of their respective mothers' scrutiny anyways. Haruhi was about to sit down when a knock on the door called for her.

"That must be Mikoto," and with that Haruhi went off to let them in.

When Haruhi opened the door, Mikoto greeted with a smile. Haruhi looked over the Uchihas. Sasuke could have sworn he had seen Haruhi's red eyes when their eyes met. "Welcome to my home. Please come in." Sasuke could have sworn once again that he had heard that voice.

"Thank you, Haruhi-san." Mikoto replied.

The Uchiha followed Haruhi into the compound. Sasuke was trying to remember if he had ever met the women. He was shocked to hear that this was Naruto's mother before they arrived, but he was sure he had never met her before, so why was he getting a feeling that they met.

Meanwhile, Hana looked over at Anko. "So Anko, it's been a while. How have you been? I see your taste in clothes hasn't changed."

Anko just smiled. "I got the goods; I might as well use them. How's being a vet? Ever want to go back to being a ninja?"

Hana shook her head. "No, I can't be going on missions when I need to learn how to be a clan head. Being a veterinarian is my way of helping the village at the same time. How about you, ever think about finding the right man?"

Anko just smirk, "I already have someone in mind. Just have to work my magic."

Hana laughed at that. She had a pretty good idea on what Anko's 'magic' would be. "I wish you the best of luck, Miterashi Anko."

Anko sighed, "Um….It is Uzumaki Anko now." It just hit Anko that she was going to have to explain this to a lot to people.

"…I see." Was all Hana could say about that.

To be frank, while Hana wasn't one of the people that hated Naruto, she wouldn't go out her way to help him either. Hana was currently on the fence when it came to the Uzumakis. Hana did want allies though.

From the outsider's point of view, the two genin and Tsume could hear how the conversation had started out light hearted, but the mention of Anko changing her name quickly killed the mood.

Naruto was going to ask if Anko was okay, but never got the opportunity, for that was the moment when Haruhi chose to walk into the room, followed by Mikoto and her children. As befitting a head of a formerly prestigious clan, Mikoto was wearing a black kimono, and so were the two young girls, each of whom were about 5 years old, on either side of her. Sasuke on the other hand was wearing an outfit similar to Naruto, while a boy the same age as the girls wore a grey outfit and stayed close to Sasuke. All five had the much recognized clan symbol on their backs.

"Please make yourselves at home. There are refreshments if you wish." Haruhi said as she gestured to the table.

Mikoto sighed, "Do we really have to be so formal? I hate saying everything proper. It gives me a headache."

Tsume laughed at that. "I agree with Mikoto. Why are we acting so formal?"

Haruhi sighed "I could use the practice, but I would much rather talk normally too."

"Then it's decided--none of the proper bull." Tsume said while stretching her arms, then leaning back on the couch as if it were hers.

Haruhi saw the girls holding onto Mikoto's legs and crouched down to be at eye level with them. "And who are these two cuties?"

Both girls moved further behind Mikoto to hide from Haruhi. Haruhi just smiled at the two. Mikoto pushed the two out from behind her. Patting the taller girl, "This is Yuki." Patting the other girl next, "and this is Moka."

Both girls had black hair and eyes like all Uchiha. The only real difference was their height.

"They're so cute! Naruto, you'll be marring one of these girls." Haruhi said like it was common knowledge. The two girls blushed at the mention of marriage. They were young yes, but being some of the last Uchiha meant that other clans were already offering sons for arranged marriage. Mikoto had no choice but to educate the girls on what that meant. Mikoto knew some of the clans would go around her to get to them and the Uchiha mother wanted them to be ready, should that happen.

"WHAT?" Naruto jumped nearly 10 feet and as he turned around to face Haruhi, he tripped on the table leg and went face first onto the floor. The two girls laughed at the sight of Naruto, blushes gone completely.

"Why don't you girls go play with Naruto. He's goofy looking and loads of fun to play with." Haruhi said looking back at her son with a smile.

The girls walked over to Naruto and started to poke him while giggling. The idea of marriage already forgotten, Kiba was laughing at the blond while pointing a finger. Tsume saw this as a perfect opportunity.

"Why are you laughing Kiba? You'll be marring the other one." Tsume announced while trying to hide a smile.

"WHAT?" Kiba yelled. He didn't make a move and his mouth was opening and closing like a fish.

The yell drew the attention of the two girls and their eyes fell upon a common target.

"PUPPY!" They both yelled and rushed to get their hands on Akamaru.

Hana and Anko were laughing as they watched Kiba get tackled by two little girls.

Mikoto didn't want to be left out. Mikoto turned to her son and was about to say something, but Sasuke quickly cuts her off, with a hard stare and says one word, "No." Sasuke knew his mother way to well to not see her plotting something.

Mikoto then pouts, with a sigh, "You're no fun. Your too serious honey"

It took about 10 minutes for everything to settle. The three families went to their respective couches in the room. The living room was big enough so that a full party could be held with over 30 people. The Inuzuka were sitting mother, daughter, and son, with dogs at their feet. Indiscreetly, Kiba was keeping an eye on the 2 Uchiha girls so as to protect Akamaru, who was still clinging to his scalp like a life-line.

The Uchiha were all bunched up close to Mikoto, as if she would disappear if she was given any space. The young boy that was introduces as Kensuke was mimicking all of Sasuke's moves. It was clear that the boy thought very highly of Sasuke. The girls kept glancing over at Kiba or more to the dog that was sitting on Kiba.

Haruhi and Anko were sitting on a couch, but Naruto chose to sit on the floor. He was leaning on Haruhi's legs. To everyone else it was… different, but Naruto was anything but normal. However to Haruhi it was very reassuring. After the incident earlier that day, Haruhi was more than happy at Naruto's action. Haruhi ran her fingers through the blond's hair just for a little more reassurance that Naruto wasn't going anywhere. It brought a rather large smile to Haruhi's face. Anko could see what was going on and was glad that her otouto took her words to heart.

Mikoto looked at the display of affection with longing eyes. The black haired mother looked over at Sasuke, wishing she could have that again with her son, but after the massacre…. That Sasuke died along with the clan.

Tsume herself just remembered the time when Kiba was a child, and had to say that she was glad that time period was over. Kiba was a little terror that never did anything like what was in front of her in the entirety of his life! Hell, Hana was worse. Tsume just knew, if either her children showed that display of affection with her? It was an imposter. To be honest though, Tsume wouldn't trade that for the world.

"So tell me Haruhi, what do you plan on teaching Naruto? It would be rather interesting to hear what Konoha's newest clan will specialize in?" Hana asked. It was a clear tactic to get information on a possible new threat. Tsume and Mikoto both saw it. Sasuke and Kiba both paid closer attention. Anko was currently cursing at Hana on the inside, while Naruto looked up at his mother with curious eyes.

The big question was did Haruhi see it? The big question was also happened to be a dumb question at this point. Haruhi was a Kyuubi, of course she saw it. The fox knew that even if they were 'friends', they still would use the information against them at one point or another. However, Haruhi thought that it would be entertaining to see what they thought. _Sure_, you can call her a 'manipulative bitch' for it. But sometimes, it's just plain funny seeing how people react, especially when they don't see it coming; then it becomes hilarious as hell.

"First I plan on building up his chakra control, seeing as his chakra is already past jonin." Haruhi enjoyed the looks on their faces. The fox neglected to say most of that chakra was from her brother.

"That can't be right! That block head can't even make a bushin! How can he have chakra at a jonin level?" Kiba demanded. He, for one, was not going to be outdone by Naruto of all people! Needless to say, Sasuke felt the same as the Inuzuka. Akamaru made a bark of agreement, before making a yip and trying to hid again when he realized how it was drawing the two evil well, to him anyways girl's eyes towards him. '_Oh, why won't they just __go away__?!'_

Haruhi just smiled at Kiba. "You see, Naruto has too much chakra to make a bushin. The more chakra you have, the harder it is to control. Bushin only requires a little bit of charka, and Naruto was putting too much chakra into the jutsu. Now that he has Kage bushin, he has been able to make over 200 clones at one time and not have any negative side effects."

Naruto just stared, wide-eye at Haruhi. "The Hokage told me about that night." Haruhi said looking down at her son.

Tsume, Hana, Mikoto, and several of the dogs had their jaws hanging.

"So… how hard could it be to make 200 clones?" Kiba said. It was clear he didn't know what he was talking about.

Hana just bops Kiba on the head for his stupidity. "Kiba, even some of the best jonin on the planet can only max out at 10 to 20 Kage bushin, and after that they get sent to the hospital for chakra exhaustion." That pretty much effectively shut Kiba's mouth up.

Sasuke was fuming on the inside, _'How did the dope get __that__much__ power?'_ Sasuke was staring at Naruto.

Naruto jaw had dropped as well. He didn't think he had that much chakra. "You really mean that Kaa-chan?"

Haruhi was beaming at Naruto. "Of course I do. You are my son and you will be the greatest shinobi alive." Naruto's smile only grew at his mother's praises.

"Naruto?!" Snicker, "Great!!" Full blown laughter followed. Kiba clearly didn't believe in Haruhi's conviction. Even Sasuke was snickering a bit. Naruto frowned at the two.

Both Tsume and Mikoto were going to smack their children, but Anko's laughing cut them short. "Neither one of you know Naruto, do you?" Kiba and Sasuke remained quiet. They weren't sure what she was getting at. It was true that Kiba and Sasuke didn't know much about Naruto.

Anko smirked while crossing her arms in front of her, "I've been around my otouto for 3 days and even I can tell he has more potential than anyone else. He has huge chakra capacity. His stealth skills are better than some chunin and his ability to be aware of his surroundings is second to none in your class. He may need to train… a lot, but he already knows many things you can't be taught."

Everyone was quiet at Anko's defense of her little brother. The mothers were quiet because they knew exactly how Naruto gained those particular skills. Kiba was just struck dumb at anyone praising Naruto like that. Sasuke was debating on whether he should believe Anko; after all it was from a highly and very obviously biased source. Family has a tendency to do that. Hana just remained quiet because there was nothing to say after that. Kensuke was thinking no one was greater than his nii-chan and thusly denounced Anko's claim in his head. Moka and Yuki were both staring at Naruto with more interest. The girls were in the 'knight in shining armor' phase and would easily fill the knight role with anyone they thought was strong enough.

The atmosphere in the room was not as friendly as it once was, what with the constant attacks at and defense of Naruto's skills. It took Kuromaru to try and fix the awkward silence. "Tsume, I suggest we go outside. The children look like they need to stretch their legs and Akamaru looks like he needs to use a bush." Akamaru made a yapping sound in agreement.

Tsume looked over at the children around Mikoto. They did look uncomfortable, but it was weighing in Akamaru that made her decision easier. "I think my partner has a point. I suggest go outside and stretch for a bit."

It was agreed and everyone made their way to the back. When they arrived, the jaws dropped again. The gardens in the back of the mansion were beautiful. Flowers were everywhere and the woods in the far back only added to the unique beauty. It was like an open meadow in the middle of a dense forest. Haruhi took the open mouth as a good sigh and made a note to thank Sarutobi for paying to keep the compound like this.

Yuki and Moka ran over to the flowers to admire them while Kiba and Akamaru looked for a suitable bush so that Akamaru wouldn't be caught peeing in front of everyone. It wasn't proper at an event like this after all, even if they were being informal. Sasuke hung back and Kensuke followed. The three mothers and the dogs sat at the covered porch and watched the girls run in the garden. Anko walked out to stretch. It was a pity Kiba was with Akamaru. The boy would have enjoyed the view immensely. Hana joined Tsume on the porch.

Naruto, on the other hand decided he wanted to play. After all, all talk and no play makes for a very restless fox-boy.

The three mothers looked on as the girls were at first shy as Naruto walked up, but then began laughing and chasing the blond after he said "Your 'it'," and poke both of them on the forehead. Sasuke rarely played with them, so any chance like this was always accepted.

Anko walked over to where Haruhi and the others were. "He definitely knows how to make friends." Anko said.

Haruhi sighed, "Only with people who aren't already tainted."

Sauske didn't know what that meant, but didn't think about it too hard. The others on the other hand frowned at such a simple yet powerful comment.

"Nah nah, nah-nah, nah! You can't catch both of us! There is one of you and two of us!" Naruto had been tagged and now the girls were taunting him.

Naruto smiled "Kage bushine no jutsu." Yuki and Moka both eeped. They were surrounded by several Naruto's now. Tsume just laughed at how easily Naruto turned the table. Hana counted about 30 clones and already she was seeing a strong ninja in the making.

Two clones ran up to the girls. "Quickly, get on our backs." The first Naruto said. "We are the good clones," said the second. "TRAITORS!!" Several of the other clones yelled. Yuki and Moka weren't sure what to do, so they just went with it. They soon found themselves laughing with excitement as at the two Naruto's carrying the girls ran around on all fours like a horse and the remaining Naruto's chased them.

Mikoto smiled as she saw her girls laughing on Naruto's back. _'How could I have ever thought he was __evil__.'_ Tsume smiled as well as she saw Kiba come out of the bush with a refreshed Akamaru only to be run over by several clones and two laughing girls. Sasuke just watched his teammate, the Uchiha prodigy keeping his thoughts to himself. Kensuke wanted to go and play, but if it was beneath Sasuke, then it was beneath him too!

Haruhi was the proudest of her son right now. The fox hadn't been with Naruto long, so moments like this were precious to her. Making two little girls laugh was probably one of the greatest things her son has done in her eyes and as little as that was, it still would be forever ingrained into Haruhi's memory.

The party ran down from there. They ate Haruhi's cooking which was some of the best food any of them have ever had. Years of practice had made Haruhi's cooking top notch. Long lived creatures needed hobbies too. Hana tried to get more information about what Haruhi would teach Naruto, but Haruhi felt she told them enough. Even though the fox only told Hana about chakra control, the thing was all the genins would be put through that.

Sasuke stayed where he was and just watched while Kensuke fell asleep on his arm. Mikoto just smiled at the sight of her two boys. Kensuke wanted to be a mini-Sasuke and Sasuke was actually trying to teach Kensuke all he knew, even if Sasuke would never admit it.

Sasuke had a look that said he made a difficult decision and only Haruhi saw it. _'I guess he finally figured it out.'  
_  
Tsume was looking over her unconscious Kiba. In the past half- hour, he had been run over several more times before he even made it half way to the porch. Anko had joined the fun down below and played with Naruto, Yuki, and Moka. Already, they had gone through many games. The thing Yuki and Moka liked the most was the role-playing. Anko was the evil konoichi from Iwa and Naruto was the brave shinobi from Konoha that arrived to rescue the capture princesses Yuki and Moka. Unbeknownst to the Yuki and Moka though, was that Anko was using this as further opportunity to train Naruto. Anko was more or less just giving Naruto first hand combat experience.

The happy atmosphere was back and everything seemed right again. Many topics were covered between the clan heads and all agreed to form an alliance much like the Shika-Ino-Cho trio. Seeing as how in reality the only real clan was Inuzuka, they agreed that this was a long term alliance. The Inuzuka would help both clan build up and in return the Uchiha and Uzumaki would support the Inuzuka anyway possible. Technically though, underneath the underneath Kakashi would say. This alliance was only to see if a real alliance would bear fruit. On paper it was a real alliance, in reality the Inuzuka were testing to see if two tiny clans were of any use. With that settled and it getting late, Tsume gathered her dogs and children bid goodbye and left.

After about 10 minutes from when the Inuzuka left, Kensuke, Moka, and Yuki were out on the couch in the living room. Mikoto, Anko, and Haruhi were sitting on the porch as Naruto and Sasuke went at it.

While Naruto was playing, Sasuke had been thinking that whole time he had been sitting with Kensuke. When his mother had first informed him that they were heading over to the Uzumaki compound, Sasuke was surprised upon hearing those words, and was even more surprised to be staring at a white haired beauty that was, and here's the kicker, claiming to be Naruto's mother. He went over and over all the information he had gathered that day in his head, with Anko's claim that Naruto's skills were not as lacking as he once thought in the forefront.

_'It doesn't add up. How could Naruto have that much power? He never showed any skill at the academy. Does he have a blood-limit, or did he get special training.'_ Sasuke thought up several ideas. Sasuke guessed that Naruto's stealth and awareness skills came from dodging ANBU after all of his pranks. That was just cardio though. Of course, Sasuke didn't know the real reason was to dodge the mobs and the near-daily beatings. _'Where did he get that power? What about that kyuubi that was training him?'_

That one question brought everything home. The Kyuubi from a few days ago was also named 'Haruhi'. Then that technique Naruto tried to perform....

______________________________________________________________________________

"_Hey, dope. What kind of jutsu was that?"_

"I don't know, teme. All I know was that I did it wrong. Haruhi-chan told me to focus my chakra into a ball at the end of my finger. I couldn't seem to get that part."  
______________________________________________________________________________

When Sasuke realized this, his head snapped to look at Haruhi. Her hair matched the tails on the Kyuubi. Another memory revealed itself.

_"You can't even do a simple transformation jutsu. What kind of demon are you?"  
_

"_You got balls brat. The last person to ever question my skills was eaten alive. Tasted like chicken, but you're stupid so I'll let it slide."_

"You see brat, the jutsu I used was not an academy level jutsu. It was a kinjutsu. Normal humans can't perform this jutsu because you need a kage levels worth of chakra. It isn't just a simple transformation that wears off after a while. This is a permanent transformation. Organs, skin, eyes, even your DNA change."  
______________________________________________________________________________

'_Oh, __hell__…' _

Sasuke was now fairly certain that Haruhi was the 9 tails from earlier understatement intentional.

'_A __9 tails__ was training Naruto. Not only that, but if she wasn't lying about Naruto being her son…!'_ Then more puzzle pieces fell into place. That was why everyone stays away from Naruto. Sasuke was young, but not dumb. He had always wondered why adults told children to stay away.

'_Naruto was a __demon__, He should be hated and feared.'_ However, as he turned back to see his sisters and Naruto laughing and playing, and he couldn't help but see that that Anko lady was clearly by far the most insane out of the whole batch of crazies, yes, he also consider his 'sisters' crazy as well. It's an 'older-brother' thing.

Sasuke stared to second guess himself and the village on how a dope like Naruto could be dangerous. Naruto showed no skill at all and if Naruto was dangerous of evil, why was he always trying to make people smile.

Once the Inuzuka left and Sasuke's siblings were asleep from exhaustion, Sasuke challenged Naruto to a fight. Naruto accepted by taking off his formal shirt for more flexibility. With an exasperated sigh, Mikoto was going to intervene, but before she could, both Anko and Haruhi stopped her.

"They don't like each other, but they must respect each other if they are going to work as a team. Sometimes beating the snot out of each other is the only way to do that." Anko said to Mikoto. The Uchiha understood this as she was a ninja herself, but still. Mikoto looked to Haruhi, but saw that the fox was focused on the fight.

Sasuke was using the best of his taijutsu to defeat the 40 clones around him. Naruto was pretty much a half-trained brawler at this point with no real skill behind his punches and kicks, but even Sasuke's skill with the Uchiha form of taijutsu wasn't perfect against overwhelming numbers. For every one hit Naruto landed, Sasuke dispelled 12 clones with far more skill and precision, but Naruto just made more.

"Why aren't you stronger, why are you so easy to beat?" Sasuke called out as he destroyed another 2 clones only to take a punch to the face.

Naruto was confused, "What the hell are you talking about teme? I'm beating you!" Sasuke's answer was several fire balls destroying more clones. Sasuke nearly laughed out loud at that last comment.

It had already been about 10 minutes into the fight, but Sasuke was fed up.

"Your 'mother' was that Kyuubi from earlier." That statement, so strongly ushered from Sasuke's belligerent mouth, caught everyone's attention. Anko and Mikoto's eyes shot open, blood running colder than ice. Mikoto from not knowing or ever suspecting about Haruhi being a 9 tails, while Anko was shocked a genin figured it out so fast.

"Sasuke dear, what are you talking about? Haruhi-san isn't a Kyuubi. Tell him, Haruhi-san." Mikoto said hurriedly and with a nervous smile, but Haruhi's lack of a response was starting to scare her.

Mikoto turned to look at Haruhi, praying that her son was wrong, but Haruhi just continue watching the fight. Haruhi's eyes never batted.

"Tell me he is lying; tell me my son is wrong." Normally Mikoto would have down-right ignored a comment like that, but the Uchiha remembered how strong Haruhi really was and it just wasn't normal.

Haruhi didn't turn her head.

The fox just kept watching the fight play out as she spoke. "Your son isn't wrong. I am a Kyuubi."

Mikoto didn't know what to say, didn't know what to do. "Now please be quiet, I want to hear what they are saying." Mikoto was so far gone she followed the orders without thinking.

Naruto swallowed, all his clones had stopped moving. "Wh…what are you talking about?"

Sasuke growled. "Don't play dumb! A Kyuubi shows up around the same time as your mother. You yourself said that that the Kyuubi was teaching you techniques. Her hair is the same damn color as her tails, and Haruhi even said she can become human permanently, if she wants."

Naruto swallowed again. The blond had nothing against that. Sasuke took a step forward.

"You are a demon, a kyuubi even, so why are you so weak? You could be the thing I need to gain more power, more strength, but you're just too damn weak. A real demon should have killed me by now, but here we are, still fighting, and I'm winning."

Naruto was starting to panic and wasn't sure what to do…but the next words brought him out of it.

"That thing you call a 'mother' could…" Sasuke never finish as a fist sent him flying.

Sasuke flipped in mid-air and landed on his feet, only to see a very pissed-off blond. More shocking to Sasuke than the punch he received in the face however, was the realization that Naruto had moved faster than Sasuke would have ever believed he was capable of.

"Watch what you say about Kaa-chan, **Sasuke**!!! I was an orphan, with no one I could call friends or family! I could count on my hand how many people I could trust. I was hated so much, and by so many people, and I didn't even know why." He took a breath to steady himself, to bring himself back. "I didn't even know if I was wanted when I was born."

Memories came, unbidden and unwanted, to his mind. One was of a woman who had thrown a rock at his face, "Just leave and never come back!!" Another with a boy his own age at 4, "My parents say I shouldn't play with a 'monster'." Another during a beating in a back alley, "You should be grateful that this is all I can do to you, demon!" who left after one last kick while he was on the ground.

Naruto looked over at Haruhi and gave a small smile. "Then she showed up. Kaa-chan gave me a warm home, a family, some people I could trust, a past, and a future."

"I know now that I was loved when I was born. That I would have been loved if it wasn't for the attack when I was born." Naruto turned back to Sasuke with fire in his eyes. "I will not let you insult her, my family." Naruto took a fighting stance, fist clenched. "And for your information, stupid; I'm only half kyuubi."

Sasuke smirked; just as planned. To be truthful, he didn't give a damn on what or who Naruto was, not really, so long as he could get stronger, and eventually kill his brother. In an odd way, Naruto found the first person to accept who he was. That's no reason to stop them from going at it with more vigor and drive to beat the bloody crap out of each other.

Mikoto listened to every word. For a long time, she knew Naruto was a good kid, and after Mikoto figured out who his parents were, the Uchiha tried her best to help him; it just had very little effect. Mikoto looked back at Haruhi. If what Naruto proclaimed was true, then Haruhi wasn't bad, but that didn't change the facts at that moment.

"Haruhi, what are your intentions for the village?" Mikoto asked. Anko was starting to protest at such a question, but Haruhi motioned for her to keep silent.

Haruhi turned to look at Mikoto. "What do you mean? I plan to build the Uzumaki clan for Naruto, and help him become Hokage. You know that already."

"You are a Kyuubi, and your son was treated…poorly." That would have been plenty enough reason for her. "What other secrets are you hiding?" Mikoto narrowed her eyes. The Uchiha woman had to be careful not to anger Haruhi, but still get the answers.

Haruhi however, just laughed. "From you, not much. The way I met Minato was true. Minato had seduced me, not the other way around. I have a son, he's right there." Haruhi placed a finger on her chin and took a thinking pose. "I can't think of anything I'm hiding from you."

Mikoto frowned and stated, with a flat voice, "You're mocking me, aren't you?"

Haruhi smiled at Mikoto, "Yes, yes I am." Haruhi's smile turned to a frown. "If you really must know, you were the only person I was ever jealous of. That's my 'deep dark secret'."

That had caught Mikoto off balance, so she could be forgiven for the way her face blanched. "Whaa--? What do you mean?"

"Minato spoke so highly of you, and always turned to you if he needed something I couldn't help with…. I truly believe that if you weren't married at the time I got here, he would have asked you and not me to be his wife. When I was pregnant I accused him of that very thought several times. Minato just smiled and said he was happy I was jealous. He said that it meant I cared about him, but he never denied it either."

Mikoto was… speechless. Here she was, in front of one of the most, if not the most powerful creatures on the planet. Who was now, apparently, admitting that she was jealous of her, over a man. Yes, it was Minato, but still, the idea was shocking.

"That is also why I trust you." Mikoto couldn't help but once again be gob smacked at Haruhi words. "Minato was a good judge of character, and if he trusted you that much, than I will too. I need friends, Mikoto. I can't be there for Naruto all the time. I need help and I would like for you to be one of the people he can turn to for help. I haven't hid anything from you and I don't plan to. Mikoto, I ask for your forgiveness if you feel I have wronged you in anyway."

Mikoto wasn't sure how to take the fact that a creature that to some, would have been considered a real-life deity, was actually apologizing.

"What about the Kyuubi that attack the village?" Mikoto didn't know why she asked, really, she doesn't… but she wanted to know.

Haruhi looked back at Naruto as he delivered a kick to Sasuke's side. "That was my brother. He was denied a horribly powerful object which I possessed at the time. He killed my entire family single-handedly for it, and tracked me down to Konoha just to take it. If he had gotten the thing, we would all be dead."

"Does the Hokage know?" Mikoto's questions were coming out faster than her brain could process. Mikoto was asking these questions without thinking them completely through.

Haruhi smiled, "He wedded us. He knows everything. He knew I was a Kyuubi before I married Minato."

Mikoto tried to not look so stunned and made a note to talk with Sarutobi. "Well, if he has no problems, then I don't."

Mikoto stood, deciding that some time for her-self was needed in order to process everything; it was, after all, one hell of an info-dump. "Sasuke we're leaving. Be sure to say your thanks to our hosts."

The fight between the boys stopped, each one practically in mid-strike. Sasuke gave a look that said he didn't want to go yet, but he obeyed regardless; even Naruto looked a little disappointed.

Mikoto made as if to leave, before stopping herself and turning towards the sitting matriarch of the still-new clan.

"Haruhi, there's one last thing, before I go. Whenever I was with Minato, all he ever talked about was you. It drove me nuts at times and I was also jealous of you. He loved you so much… I had so wished that I had that when I was married. And my answer is 'Yes'. If the time ever comes to it, come hell or high water, I would be honored to help you and your son in whatever way I can."

Haruhi stood up and hugged Mikoto. "Thank you, you don't know how much this means to me." Mikoto smiled and returned the hug. It would be an awkward friendship to be sure, but it would still be a friendship.

The Uchiha left, with two Naruto clones carrying Yuki and Moka, and Sasuke piggybacking Kensuke. Meanwhile, Anko was tending to all the bruises and cuts on the real Naruto. Naruto's pants were also burned beyond repair. Even with all the scrapes though, the blond had the biggest smile on his face.

Haruhi walked up with a smile just as wide. "You knew that gaki would have figured it out?" Anko asked without stopping her treatment of Naruto.

"Not at first, but after I thought about it a little, it would be hard for him not to have seen it. He had all the clues on a 10 piece puzzle and he was rookie of the year. It would have been sad if he didn't see it." Haruhi replied.

Anko sighed, "You took a big gamble. I wouldn't have done it."

Haruhi took a look at Naruto's black and blue face. "Tell me Naruto-kun, what do you think?"

Naruto's smile grew even larger as the memories of tucking Yuki and Moka to bed at the Uchiha compound came back to him. Both girls had called him 'nii-chan', and it felt… nice. "Today was one of the best days ever." Naruto completely looked over the fact he just received memories from his clones.

Haruhi messed with Naruto's hair. "The cuts will heal by morning, but the bruises may take 2 or 3 days. Go to bed, you have to be up by seven tomorrow." Haruhi advised.

Naruto nodded and hugged both Haruhi and Anko. "You two are the greatest; you guys know that, right?"

With that said Naruto went up stairs to his room. It didn't take long for a crash to be heard and Naruto to be heard yelling, "ANOTHER AMBUSH, WHAT THE HELL!!!" The foxes had attacked again.

Anko just followed with a big smile on her face. The purple haired jonin really had a family that cared about her, and better yet, a little brother to torture. "Naruto-kun, Nee-chan will rescue you!"

A panicked voice came back, "NOOOOOOOOO, get off before she gets here quick!"

Haruhi just listened to her children. Haruhi grabbed the picture of her and Minato. "I love you Minato-kun." Haruhi traced Minato with her finger. She waited 5 more minutes just looking at the picture and remembering old times. When the fox was done, she placed the picture back and went to see that nothing got broken.

**Author's Notes**

**I would like to apologize for taking so long. I will finish this story. I will not quit half way through like some people. I had the blue screen of death and geek squad failed to fix my computer. I had to get a new one before I could continue. **

**I hope you enjoyed the chapter. I fixed Mikoto's name from Makoto as suggested.**

**Thank you for being patient. The next chapter is already almost done to make up for the delay. Once again if you have suggestion on my grammar, feel free to tell me and explain how to fix it. **

**A.D. Sargent****: I don't think I have ever read motherhen and her kits. I'll look it up though. When we are talking about a category with over 210,000 different stories, I'm bound to come across one or two ideas that are the same.**


	7. Omake

**Omake**

**  
Note: This is set between chapters six and seven of 'Naruto and the White Fox'. Personally, you can choose whether or not this is canonical with his story. This was mostly just for fun. [:-)**

**This omake has been approved by Mad2theMax88**

If one were to look at the front of the Uchiha's residential complex that evening, they would have paused to take in the unusual sight that greeted them. More specifically, at the sight of the two identical blondes, both seeming of age 12, being walked out by the lady of the house; one Uchiha Mikoto.

No one would be faulted for doing so, as the Uchiha's rarely get many visitors…these days.

"Good-bye, Uchiha-san!" spouted the clone on the left, the Naruto clones doing their best to be polite to Mikoto. After all, didn't mom say to be gentlemanly...? Whatever the heck that's supposed to mean.

"We had lots of fun!" The other clone smiled.

"Well I'm glad. Thanks again for carrying Moka and Yuki home," came Mikoto's reply.

"Ah don't worry about it, Uchiha-san!" cried the one to the right, trying to wave off the thanks.

"You're friends of our family now! We need to watch each other's backs," proclaimed by the one in the left, with an equally boisterous face.

_'Yes, we most certainly do.'_ Turning from the door, Mikoto called out; "Oh Sasuke! Aren't you going to say good-bye?"

Upon hearing this, Sasuke just leaned back his head from a hidden corridor behind the front door  
and quirked his eyebrow, puzzled at his mother's request.

"What's the point? They're just Shadow Clones."

"Oi, we're still alive enough to kick your ass, teme!" one of the clones so very loudly proclaimed, while the other crossed his arms and nodded a "uh-huh!"

"One, you're not 'alive enough' to count in my book, and two, I puffed out enough of you guys to make a small fogbank. All from fighting several of you guys at the same time. What makes you two any different?" Sasuke countered in bored and condescending tone. Smirk included.

"Sasuke! Is that how you treat people after they helped carry your sister's home?" admonished Mikoto.

Unbeknownst to Mikoto though, in the time she had her head turned away from them, the two Shadow clones quickly seized the opportunity to give Sasuke several profane gestures, causing Sasuke to roll his eyes.

"Well?"

Giving his mother a face that practically griped, 'Do I really have to?' All he received for his  
trouble was a look that said 'Young man, if you don't, I will make it very troublesome for you in the upcoming weeks. I'm still your mother, don't you forget,' which finally caved in what little resolve he had and, incidentally, further cemented his opinion that girls are crazy.

Giving slight sigh, he walked to the front gate door and gave the two a small bow, the two of whom having quickly assumed the 'all-too-innocent look' when Mikoto turned back to them.

"I thank you, for carrying Moka and Yuki home."

"Finally, some respect from you-"

"Don't push it," Sasuke muttered; then, in a louder voice, quickly said, "Well, don't let us keep you from being on your way. Bye."

And with that, the door was hastily closed, though not quite slammed, on their faces.

The clones muttered under their breath about stupid temes as they overhear Mikoto ask where Sasuke learned to be so rude, "because it certainly wasn't from me!"

As the two started walking back on the empty road, one of them gave a nudge to the other and muttered, "Man- never figured Sasuke to be a 'momma's boy'".

Those were the last words ever uttered between them, before two kunai's struck them in the back,forcing them to disappear into puffs of smoke.

"Sasuke, what are you doing on top of the wall? Not to mention so fast?" Mikoto asked, surprised. Honestly, she turns her head for one second…..

"It's nothing Mom. Just thought I heard some pests." Sasuke lies, through his teeth.

After a brief considering look, raised eyebrow and all, she just gave a short shrug and left it at that.

"Are they all tucked in?" whispered Misato as they walked into the household.

"They are all asleep." Sasuke quietly confirmed.

"That's good; could you wait in the living room while I get the tea? I think we need to  
discuss a few things." Mikoto said as she walked into the kitchen.

"…? Alright; you need any help?" Sasuke asked, having a somewhat vague idea where this was going.

"Just clean up the table if there's any mess."

The Uchiha girls almost always end up using the table for some thing or another, and though she tells them to clean it up after they're done with using it in what seems an uncountable amount of times now, more often than not they forget to do so, much to Mikoto's frustration and consternation.

As Sasuke set up the small table, he couldn't help but feel a bit of unease, wondering what this  
is all about. Although, it would make sense that his mother would like to talk about the happenings of earlier that day with him. After all, it's not every day that you find out that your fellow classmate and teammate turns out to be part demon, nor that the apparent alliance between the two clans now turned out to be much more binding than he thought it would ever be.

Oh, Sasuke heard about that alright. Was enough to allow Naruto a few punches in whilst they were both brawling at the yard, _'which, knowing him, the idiot probably counts as 'wins'; luckily the chances of anyone believing him would be slim'_.

As Sasuke's mind momentarily went over the implications of what his mother's proclamation  
entailed, his mother made her way in, carrying tray holding the tea, still steaming.

After a few minutes of slowly drinking the hot tea, Mikoto finally broke the silence. "So, exciting day today wasn't it?"

"...Yeah," was Sasuke's only reply.

"So Sasuke, why don't you tell me how you realized that Haruhi was a Kyuubi?" Mikoto asked.

To that, Sasuke nodded and told Mikoto how he was able to deduce that Haruhi was a kyuubi. He told of their first meeting that fateful day on the roof, how she boasted of her shape-shifting powers, and, amongst other things, how when he first laid eyes on Naruto's mother at their household that day, that he recognized her eyes, even though he was certain they had never met before.

As he related all of the clues to his mother, Mikoto simply sat and listened, gently sipping her tea all the while. When he finally finished, she had her eyes closed, deep in thought. When she finally opened her eyes, she set down her tea and gave her son a long look.

Needless to say, the feeling of unease Sasuke had felt earlier quickly grew into that of extreme discomfort, as though he was treading some very dangerous ground.

"What is it? If you're upset about me not telling you about Haruhi earlier, it's because Kakashi told me to keep her presence a secret. And I guess I should've been able to pick up the signs sooner…" Sasuke only ever showed this emotion to her, the feeling of failure.

"Sasuke, it's not about that." Mikoto said trying to comfort her son.

"Then what is it?" Sasuke asked.

"While I'm proud of your deductive skills…no, very proud of your deductive skills, I have to  
ask….What were you thinking?" Mikoto didn't yell or raise her voice. The question was asked as if it was over dinner.

Blinking in surprise, he barely had time to process the question before Mikoto pressed on.

"Honey, you just revealed, in front of an actual bijū that was disguising herself, that you knew she wasn't human. On her home-ground, with the nearest people that could be of any help beyond easy hearing distance; and us, all by ourselves, with three non-combatants on our side." Mikoto stated calmly.

Thought frightened at first Mikoto understood Haruhi wouldn't do anything to harm them; however Sasuke had done something very stupid, reckless, and irresponsible. Sasuke had put her whole family in danger. Those three and her son are the last of her family. She can't help but feel protective of them.

Which is apparently something that she needs to drive into her son, so that he might not ever do something so recklessly stupid again. She honestly doesn't want to, she really didn't; but this is one of those things where there really is no choice. Better here in her home where he is safe than in the battlefield, where it could get him and his teammates pointlessly killed.

As the implications of what might have happened set in, eyes widening at the very thought, Sasuke found that he couldn't say anything.

'_Good,'_ she thought to herself, _'because I'm not finished yet.'_

"And what was that for? What was the point of endangering your entire family with this reckless and thoughtless act? Unless my sense of hearing is losing its edge, it's so that you could get  
stronger." Mikoto stated with near-incredulity in her voice, nearly spitting out the last words.

Sasuke remained silent, though his hands were formed into fists and he could not stop the small twitches on his face. Right now, he knew, she was at one of those points where he'd never doubt that she was shinobi of the leaf. Right now she was furious.

"I will admit that there will be a time when you must throw everything into the air in order to complete a mission. A time when all else fails, where you have to trust in luck that things will turn out alright," She allowed a small pause to let that sink in.

"But you… you didn't even think about the consequences of your actions when your family was right there. When we were just having a friendly outing with an ally, you, on a whim, without planning, revealed what lesser people might out-right kill to keep hidden! You were lucky it was the Uzumaki's, and not anyone else." Mikoto scolded.

"I would have thought of something. I would have gotten us out!" Sasuke spat out, unable to take it quietly any longer.

"How? How would you have gotten us out?" Mikoto asked, unimpressed.

She watched his face as he struggled to come up with a way for all of them to get out alive, when there was a Kyuubi, a Special Jounin, and worst case scenario, Naruto sides with his mother instead of protesting, which if it comes down to it, Haruhi could just knock him out to get him out of the way, bringing in his Shadow Clones to the mix.

She watched him struggle for a few seconds before finally sighing and gently grabbing his hand.

"Sasuke, as your mother, I love you. And I believe with all my heart that you will become the finest Uchiha in the clan's history; but you aren't perfect, nor are you omniscient. Nobody is. If that had happened with anyone else, barring a miracle, we would have all been slaughtered."

Feeling as though he'd been punched in the face, Sasuke shook his hand out of his mother's grasp. He kept his head down, kept his eyes to the floor and hid them in his bangs,  
hiding them from Mikoto.

"Isn't that a bit hypocritical?" Sasuke finally asked, trying to change the subject. "You're  
risking our family by swearing to come to their aid, 'come hell or high water', when as far as I know they could turn on Konoha and bring it all down on us."

Mikoto tried to steel herself, fighting the urge to strangle her own son. _'Don't you think I don't know what you're trying to do? Who do you think your mother is?_' Regardless, she went on as if nothing was amiss.

"There is nothing shameful in aiding a comrade in their time of need. Because one day, it might  
come to be that we will be the ones who will be in need of help. Especially, when there's no one else to turn to." Mikoto countered.

'_For that is when you know who are truly your friends,' _Mikoto thought.

A snort was the response that she got. Well, that's fine too. She was just about to take the problem to its head anyways.

"Your still letting what happened all those years ago run your life, aren't you?" Mikoto said softly, in a tone that could barely be heard.

Thump!

_'Ah,'_ Mikoto thought to herself. _'That hit the mark, didn't it?'_

Haruhi wasn't wrong when she told Mikoto that Sasuke had issues. She just severely and that is used as an understatement, underestimated the full extent of it.

In a knee-jerk reaction, Sasuke's fist struck the table, faster than an eye could blink. Those words, more statement than question, rang something deep inside of him. They had always tried to avoid speaking about what happened all those years ago. It wasn't healthy, but the pain was still raw, still hurting. A point that is now made even more obvious.

"What do you want me to do?" The words that came out of his mouth were strained, almost a  
growl.

Mikoto kept herself still, with no words spoken. Even she didn't know how to answer that. Mikoto couldn't say 'let it go', but she would never say 'go forth and take vengeance for our clan.' Especially since she knew why that tragedy happened.

Sasuke then jumped up, his normally frowning face turned into a full grimace.

"He nearly killed everyone, Mom! In fact, he practically did! Just us, just everyone in this house, is all that's left! He killed Dad! He killed Auntie and Uncle and Grandma and Grandpa! And he made me watch them all die again and again and again. And you want me to forget about it? What he did to us?" _'__what he __**did**__ to me__?!'_

"I don't ask that you forgive your br-… Itachi. I don't and can't ask that you forget about what happened. But whatever you say Sasuke, I have already lost one son before that night. I don't want to lose another like I did Itachi…" Mikoto said those words with sorrow.

"You are the eldest of the children, Sasuke. They look up to you and they love you, and you have to realize that your life isn't merely your own. Whatever happens to you, affects us as well" Mikoto continued.

"Don't just lump me with them," whispered Sasuke, resentment in his voice. "They barely remembered that night. I had it nearly ingrained into my skull. I haven't been a child since that night."

"If you don't want me to treat you as a child, then don't act like one!" snapped back Mikoto. The mother was pained by her son's words, but she hid that fact."If you intend on being a clan head and a shinobi of the leaf, to be worthy of that crest and headband, then start acting like it! Do you remember your duty and obligations? Or have you forgotten that? What are they?"

"...'To protect my family and my village; to lead them to peace and prosperity. To Guide them in adversity and uncertainty; to do whatever is necessary.'" Sasuke recited back.

Nodding, she then looked at him in the eyes."Does a clan head drag down everyone else just so that he could gain personal satisfaction? Does a clan head only think about himself, ahead of his people and his village?"

He knew the answer to those rhetorical questions. He knew, yet…

At this moment, Sasuke was at a loss. He felt himself being torn and struggling at the inside. For it was never only for the pride of the Uchiha that was driving his vengeance. It wasn't only because he wanted to avenge his loved ones and for what Itachi did to him, as Mikoto might have thought. It wasn't that simple.

No, Sasuke Uchiha utterly, utterly hates Itachi. But most of all, he hated himself. He hated himself for not being able to do anything as Itachi got away with murdering his cl-, no… his family. He hated himself for being so weak, exactly as Itachi said he was. _Because_ Itachi said he was. That's why he still hates himself. Because he still is weak and that is something that he will never forgive him-self for.

Suddenly, without him noticing, he finds himself enveloped in his mothers' arms, holding him as if on a lifeline.

"I've already failed as a mother once. I can't bear it… if I fail again with you." Mikoto whisper more to herself than to Sasuke.

_'….How dare she? How could she do something like that?'_ Sasuke thought as he watched his mother.

After what seemed like an eternity, Sasuke let out a deep breath he didn't remember holding, and  
gently patted his mother in the back as he returned her hug. "Okay, Mom. I'll be careful from now on. This family is all I have left. I won't endanger it again."

When his mother broke out of the hug to look at him, Sasuke struggled to force his face into an  
approximation of a smile. It was the best he could do, since it's been so long that he pretty much forgot how too, but he tried anyway, not wanting her to worry. Mikoto saw this, and gave a small smile back for the thought.

One last thought occurred to her. "Sasuke you know Naruto took the same oath as you right. That the village comes before everything, even your own clan?"

Sasuke nodded, "That means if they turn on the village then we will try and stop them and I would expect them to do the same to us." Sasuke sighed as he lost another argument to his mother.

The morning after.

Sasuke walked down the stairs leading up to the bedrooms and walked into the kitchen  
where his mother was making breakfast. Mikoto looked over her shoulder and gave  
her son a smile. Sasuke just shrugged and grabbed something that was already on the table.

"Well, looks like the fan-girls are waiting out-side." Mikoto loved this part of the  
day. It was agreed upon that she would do recon for her son before he left the  
house and walk into a female ambush.

Mikoto got to talk to a few of the girls, a traitorous action to her son, if he ever found out. Despite what some might think, the Uchiha mother did actually liked some of them. They would make good wives and better mothers…but they also would make horrible ninja. However, she does have to give them kudos for the ambush and stalking skills, unhealthy though it may be.

Sighing, "Won't they just give it a rest?"

Sasuke wanted to rebuild his clan, but he wanted a strong wife for his children. Plus… he hadn't really given much thought what kind of girl he wanted, other than that major point. Someone who could defend the clan against another…night like that time all those years ago.

'_These__ girls are just a pain.'_ The boy thought to himself._  
_  
"No such luck honey." Mikoto didn't like that the village treated him like royalty, but she loved the fact that she was going to get grandchildren out of him. _'One of those girls is going to rape him one day.'_ Mikoto saw Sasuke hog tied and screaming like a girl in her head and giggled a little at the image. _'Well it might just do to mess with his head a little bit.'_

"Oh Sasuke, have you ever thought about finding a girl to ask out? It might break  
their hearts enough to drive them away." Mikoto watched Sasuke out the corner of her eye.

Coughing on a drink "…Are you going insane woman?" Sasuke is and will forever be a brooder to the outside world, but he was much more lively with his family.

"It's not that bad! Besides, who knows? Maybe the girl you choose will end up being  
your soul-mate or something, and it'll solve both the fan-girl problem and the 'continuing the Uchiha-line problem'!" Needless to say, Mikoto was having a hard time trying to keep from bursting into a fit of giggles. For one thing she might not be able to stop once she does.

"I can't believe this…" Seriously, what brought this on? Sauke had never heard his mother say these words, ever. Mikoto just agreed to 'help him'? Never once did she suggest what she was suggesting now.

"What, can you blame me? At my age" Mikoto faked a pout and crossed her arms, "And seeing you grow up so fast, it makes me think about grandkids."

"You're not that old, Mom!" Sasuke was trying to stay calm, he honestly was… but good grief was his mother was doing a good job at messing with his brain.

"You think so…? Maybe I should start dating again before it's too late, then. I could always rebuild the clan. Then you wouldn't have to worry about that, I wonder who is available. Sasuke, you have any ideas?" With that, Mikoto just drove the last nail home as Sasuke nearly pulled his hair out and just got up to leave, trying to forget the last 20 minutes of his life.

What can she say? She loves being a mother. Even with days like yesterday.

'_We're not a perfect family,'_ Mikoto thought as Sasuke waved and grunted his good-byes to his siblings. _'And I will be the last to claim that we are. But I think, with a little luck, we'll do just fine.'_

"Oh, Girls? Didn't you want to ask Sasuke if Naruto could come over and play? If you run quickly, you might catch him before he leaves the gate!" Yep, Mikoto most definitely loves being a mother. Where else could she embarrass the hell out of someone and know they will come back every day to do it all over again. It is her god given right as a mother and she will not give it up for anything.

**A/N- Hey there folks, this is battydragon89 here. As Mad2theMax88 might have said earlier, this omake was done mostly for kicks. In case you've never heard of me, I am the head editor (mostly self-proclaimed, since we're mostly a two-man operation) of this here fanfic. **

**I've pretty much worked on it since the very first chapter, trying to make things read as smoothly as we can, as well as adding a couple jokes here and there. Not to mention bouncing back ideas with him, as well as being the guy who introduced him to for the first time. **

**Yes, I claim credit for dooming his soul to the world of fanfiction….he blames me too, by the way. **

**For this Omake, we kind of switched things up a bit—I wrote out most of it (i.e. the dialogue, the concepts and all that such) while Mad2theMax88 edits it so that it stays in with our fic's cannon, as well as add in a few bits as well. **

**Admittedly, I had a hard time ending the scene between Sasuke and Mikoto; which is why, if anyone notices, that scene didn't seem to flow. I came up with two ways to end it, both of which were rejected due to incompatibility with, in one way or another, how Mad2theMax88 planned out his fic. They still stand well on their own though, if I do say so my-self; or at least, I'd like to think so.**

**Well, with that said and done, please review. Also, some constructive criticism would be nice as well. **

**P.S.-Don't blame him for the late updates; I will admit that the main reason for the lateness is my-self. Procrastination and perfectionism is not a good mix, not to mention college. **

**This also goes for most of the chapters (except for one chapt; I don't remember which, but he had writers block for a while, so it was both our fault that time). **


	8. Chapter 7

**I do not own Naruto**

The next morning started out pretty normal for Naruto. He woke up early and got himself ready to eat at Ichiraku's. Anko had harassed him all the way out the door and Haruhi gave him a kiss goodbye.

Okay, so technically it was all new, and anything _but_ normal. So far though, the walk was peaceful, as most of the village wasn't even awake at the moment. Probably for the best, seeing as otherwise the village folk would probably take that as a sign of impending doom.

Ichiraku's was close to being the same-old same-old. Ayame though, was acting a bit more… how should Naruto put it… clingy. For one thing, Ayame promptly hugged Naruto as soon as she saw the little blond, which was something she rarely did. The chef's daughter also made a bigger portion for Naruto than normal.

Other than that it was relatively the same.

Naruto talked to Ayame about the party and how he had possibly made a friend out of Sasuke. Ayame smiled wistfully at the thought of Naruto playing with Moka and Yuki, wishing that she was there to witness such a cute sight. Ayame hugged Naruto again right before he left. Naruto didn't mind, but once again… different.

At Training Ground Seven, Naruto was greeted with the usual. Sasuke was up in a tree while Sakura stayed close by underneath. Sakura was quieter than usual though, this time around. It seemed that Sasuke's words from earlier had blatantly showed that he wasn't interested, but over the last day the pink-haired girl must have found a reason to keep pursuing Sasuke. Sakura was much less determined than before though, and it showed that morning. Naruto couldn't help but feel sorry for the girl, not that it took much for him to, and several ideas went through his head to cheer up his long-time crush.

Naruto then looked up at Sasuke as the blond walked closer.

Sasuke, noticing the blond for the first time, looked up from his normal 'brooding pose' and, with a small nod, acknowledged Naruto. Naruto, for his part, was shocked beyond understanding. Naruto had to blink several times to make sure he wasn't seeing things, and then pinched himself to make sure he wasn't dreaming.

Sasuke could do nothing but look on with a raised eyebrow.

Sasuke's nod didn't go unnoticed by Sakura and it justly floored her when she turned around to see Naruto at the end of the nod. Sakura's head was spinning; she just couldn't comprehend what she had just seen. Sasuke hadn't acknowledged Naruto…ever, to the best of her knowledge. Pink herself had rarely gotten anything out of Sasuke other than a grunt for a response. Thus the confusion spreads forth to Sakura, and the circle of confusion is now complete.

Naruto didn't say a word, but just watched Sasuke as he walked up to his teammates. He wasn't sure what was going on at all, so Naruto decided to test the waters. "Hey guys, what's up?"

Sasuke nodded again to Naruto, "Nothing at all." Sasuke answered the blond. Sasuke spoke with an aloof tone, but it was still a reply.

Okay, forget all attempts at 'relatively normal'. Things were just different today.

Sakura's jaw dropped and eyes bulged from their sockets. The pre-teen girl had been trying to get something out of Sasuke for as long as she had followed him around, with barely anything more than animal noises deemed as a proper response. Naruto however, had managed to get more words out of Sasuke than the brooder had ever spoken to the screaming fan-girls that follow him.

Naruto was about to continue his conversation or what passes for it anyways with Sasuke, but Sakura's grabbing him by the neck and dragging him flailing into the woods canceled that plan pretty thoroughly.

Sasuke just watched them go without any comment. The Uchiha may have decided to acknowledge Naruto as a rival, but he didn't care enough to go after them.

Though he had to admit, the dust trail that followed them was fairly impressive. Not to mention the small animals that they managed to scare away with all the noise.

Once Naruto and Sakura were far enough into the woods that she judged even Sasuke couldn't hear them, Sakura threw Naruto into a tree and was in his face before Naruto even knew what was going on.

"What did you do?"

Naruto scratched the back of his head where a lump was growing. "Owww…Sakura that hurt."

Sakura grabbed Naruto by the collar and shook him violently. "I don't care how you feel stupid! All I want to know is how you got Sasuke-kun to talk with you." Naruto couldn't stop the sweat bubble from forming. "Well!?!" Sakura continued.

Naruto gulped, "O.K., calm down Sakura-chan, I'll tell you."

Sakura let him go and just waited for Naruto to continue. When it looked like Naruto wasn't going to say anything, Sakura narrowed her eyes and looked as though she was about to consider beating up the blond.

Naruto gulped again. "Alright, all I did was beat the teme in a fight." The fight was really inconclusive, but Naruto wasn't going to say that.

Sakura didn't make a noise and she didn't move at all. Having no survival sense what-so-ever, Naruto waved a hand in front of her face in hopes of gaining a response.

"Hello, Sakura are you all…"

"YOU CAN"T THINK THAT I WOULD SERIOUSLY BELIEVE THAT, DO YOU BAKA!?!?!" Sakura roared at Naruto.

Naruto crawled backwards as far as he could into a hollow tree. Sakura moved closer to Naruto slowly and anger was all over her face.

"You could never beat Sasuke-kun and a joke of a ninja like you has no right to be talking with my Sasuke-kun

At this point, Naruto was so scared that he barely even registered the insult. Naruto pointed to a bruises on his face, "See, I did get in a fight with him." Sakura finally noticed the bruises she had ignored before, but that didn't stop her.

"You could have been beaten by someone that finally had enough of your pranks. You better tell me what you did or you'll die nice and slow." Sakura cracked her knuckles to emphasize her point.

Naruto just cowered at Sakura's imposing anger, and in turn, his fate was sealed.

Meanwhile……

Sasuke was just staring at the sky. The Uchiha was bored. He would never say this out loud, but at least with Naruto was around he had something to do. That was when he picked up the 'scream that was heard round the world'.

Sasuke made no visible motion other than a sigh. "Perhaps I was wrong about making Naruto my rival."

Kakashi arrived at the training ground right on time, 3 hours late, exactly on the mark. With that Kakashi gave a look at his genin.

Sakura was huffing with her arms crossed, making it clear that the female was agitated about something… perhaps it had to do with that high-pitch scream he heard a little while back. Sasuke had jumped out of the tree and was waiting for instructions, near-boredom on his features. Naruto was asleep or at least that was what you would have thought at first… before you saw his face. Naruto had healed for the most part, but Sakura's assault had left him pretty black and blue. Needless to say, the blond was officially unconscious.

Kakashi lazily walked over to Naruto and pressed a pressure point on the back of his head. This would only work if Naruto was already close to waking up; luckily the blond was and the jonin's action only sped up the process.

Naruto groggily sat up. "What happened…? All I remember was Sakura and… oh shit!" Naruto jumped up looked around quickly and when he saw the pink haired teammate, the blond retreated several feet behind his teacher.

Kakshi could deduct what happened easily enough. Sasuke said something to Sakura and Naruto defended his teammate. Sakura didn't like it and hit Naruto repeatedly. It had happened several times already. The only problem was Kakashi was wrong and if he knew the real reason, Kakashi's one eyebrow probably would have risen in curiosity.

Kakshi looked over the blond again to make sure nothing else was wrong and it appeared that most of Naruto's wounds were already healing; the clothes on the other hand…. "Naruto, where did you get those clothes?"

Naruto looked at himself and smiled as he looked back at his sensei "You like them sensei?" Kakashi didn't say anything, but Sakura certainly did.

"That is one of the ugliest outfits I have ever seen." Sakura was so focused on finding out how Naruto got into Sasuke's good graces that she had completely overlooked Naruto's new clothes.

Naruto was currently wearing the khakis that were the end-result of the family excursion to the mall. The only problem was he was in a bright, neon orange pattern. Haruhi had agreed that the clothes were much better than his jumpsuit, but it didn't take long for Naruto to find a loop hole in his end of the bargain. Naruto thought of a field of bright glowing orange flowers, and the khakis just followed orders when Naruto added his chakra.

Naruto pouted a little at his crushes words, but didn't say anything. Sasuke just got tired of waiting and cut straight to the point. "What are we doing today?" It was short, simple, and got the message through it was Sasuke.

Kakashi looked at the boy and his visible eye widened a little then went back to normal. Sasuke caught that little gesture and narrowed his eyes in a warning to his sensei. Kakashi got the hint and dropped it.

Kakashi decided that it would be best to get started; "Today we are going to work on our tracking skills. Our friend Toro gave us some trouble."

The three genin looked at Kakashi with annoyed grimaces. 'What does he mean 'us'?' was the shared thought between the three. Kakashi just told them the objective and left them to their own devices. It was only due to Naruto sacrificing his body to Toro's claws that finally allowed them to even capture that deranged feline.

Kakashi ignored his team's faces and continued in his lazy tone. "One of you is going to hide while the other two will hunt you down. The goal is not to be found. The harder it is the more you'll improve. First, Sakura will hide while Sasuke and Naruto will work together to find you. Sakura, you have 10 minutes to hide."

Sakura nodded and ran off, but before she left, "I hope you find me Sasuke-kun." And the pink haired girl was gone. Sasuke just ignored the girl and Naruto frowned at being ignored again. The 10 minutes seemed to take forever for the boys, but time came for them to move out.

"I know you both have gone through basic tracking at the academy, but that was just what it was 'basic.' Now what did they teach you?" Kakashi said.

Naruto stepped forward. "Well, they told us to look for anything that stood out, like foot-prints or a path that was made when they passed through." Sasuke maintained his silence. It was odd enough that Naruto paid attention in class.

Kakashi smiled with his one eye, "Very good, but what if the person you're tracking knows how to avoid making a path or the ground is too hard to leave foot prints?" Naruto frowned and Sasuke impatiently waited for the real lesson to start.

Kakashi walk to where Sakura walked into the woods. The jonin could see a path and foot prints left behind, and he could not help but sighed heavily. '_Next, we'll work on actually __hiding__ our movements.' _

"Okay, ignore the path and footprints; look for something else." The path easily guided the two boy's eyes for anything.

Sasuke grunted and pointed to a bush. Kakashi and Naruto followed the finger and spotted what he was pointing at. Several of the leaves were pointing in different directions than the rest of the bush. It took good eyes to see it. "Nicely done, Sasuke. Naruto you see anything?"

Naruto shook his head, "Not really sensei, but I can smell her. Does that count?"

Kakashi didn't smell anything, but then not everyone had the same level of sensitivity when concerning their senses. If an Inuzuka was here, then smell would defiantly play a part. "Yes it does Naruto. Smell can tell you a lot like where the person might be. Now go and find as many clues as possible while you look for Sakura."

Naruto and Sasuke nodded and got to work. At first it was simple, but as they moved forward, the simple job of finding Sakura turned into a competition on who could find the most clues. Sasuke had found seven clues while Naruto only found three. The competition ended upon finding Sakura.

The pink haired girl was in the most provocative pose she could think of. "Sasuke-kun you found me! I'm so… HEY… come back…"

Sasuke just quietly turned around and promptly walked away.

Naruto just looked at Sakura with a confused expression. "What are you doing?" What Sakura was trying to accomplish completely flew right over Naruto's head.

"Shut up, Naruto!" Sakura walked after Sasuke in a huff. Naruto followed, wondering what he said.

Next was Sasuke's turn to go hide. Kakashi did a quick rundown of what he told the two boys with Sakura and then let them go. Luckily for them all, Sasuke was better at hiding his path than Sakura.

Sakura was a disappointment. The girl understood the basics and had a list a mile long on what to look for, but in practice…. She was horrible. It took about half an hour to find Sasuke. Naruto was the one to find Sasuke and although Sasuke would never say it but he was happy that Sakura wasn't the one who found him.

"Very good Naruto, now it's your turn to hide. Remember, the harder you make it, the better it will be for your teammates." Kakashi said with a smile.

Naruto nodded an affirmative and walked off. The two genin waited their ten minutes and as soon as time was up they walked to the spot Naruto disappeared to.

Both Sakura and Sasuke stopped in their tracks at what greeted them. Not a clue, not one leaf moved, not one rock overturned, they watched Naruto walk right through this spot. Kakashi was impressed. Sakura was speechless. Sasuke was shocked, how could the dope be this good? Memories of Anko praising her otouto on these very skills that they were working on today came back to answer him.

Sasuke walked into the woods, he wouldn't lose to Naruto. The fact that he hadn't found a clue within 50 yards was only adding fuel to his fire.

"Wait up Sasuke, maybe Naruto didn't come this way?" Sakura yelled after her crush.

Sasuke didn't listen. _'The dope came this way, I know it.'_

Sasuke walked into a small clearing and stopped. Sakura finally caught up. The girl could see frustration painted all over his face. "What's wrong Sasuke-kun?" Sasuke ignored her and looked from side to side. Sakura watched Sasuke's head snap to several different directions.

Sakura looked up to see what Sasuke was looking at and gasped. There were several paths in every direction and if you looked closely you could see that they broke off into several more paths and crisscrossed everywhere. It was a drastic change from earlier. Before, there was not a single clue… anywhere; now it was 'clues heaven'. It was obvious that most were fakes, and it was also entirely possible that they were all fakes, what with the skill Naruto showed earlier.

Kakashi was in the trees watching and held back a whistle. This was truly impressive. Kakashi had no idea Naruto was this good at hiding, but upon remembering how he got these skills was all he needed for an explanation. This would take a jonin to find Naruto… or at least Iruka. Kakashi decided to give Sasuke and Sakura 2 hours to find Naruto. If they couldn't find Naruto, Kakashi will call off the search.  
______________________________________________________________________________

Naruto was far into the woods, near a small waterfall. It was peaceful here. Naruto decided to wait to be found here, but he fully expects that it would take them a while. He had his kage bushine running all over the woods for that matter. Kakashi said to make it difficult, so Naruto treated it like a real situation where he needed to get away.

In the mean time, Naruto decided that it was time to work on the jutsu that his mother destroyed his clock with. "Yosh!! Let's get to work! Dattebayo!!"

The two hours went as fast as a snail running a mile long race. Sasuke was going to have an ulcer just trying to grasp the idea that Naruto was nowhere to be found. Sakura had simply given up a long time ago. With Kakashi, he had made his own shadow clones to find Naruto. The real Kakshi found the boy sleeping by the waterfall and wearing different clothes, or rather, different colors.

Instead of being lazy or succumbing to his bruises, which were now gone, he found that Naruto was worn out from chakra exhaustion. Luckily, it wasn't serious. Kakashi honestly wanted to let the boy sleep, but he still had to get a mission in.

Kakashi dropped down and grabbed the boy gently. Kakashi was about to return to his other genin, but when he turned around, he froze. The trees were peppered blast holes, with some of the trees being close to falling over.

Kakashi just looked at the destruction. The craters were not very big, but put one of those on a person and they would be in the hospital for a while. Kakashi looked down at the sleeping blond. _'Did you do all of this?'_ Naruto mumbled something as a reply. Kakashi just smiled, picked Naruto up in his arms and jump off to find the rest of his team.

Upon arrival, Kakashi suggested they all go get something to eat. At first there was confusion on where Naruto had changed his clothes. Sasuke just gave a sleeping Naruto a death glare. Sakura's gurgling stomach cut the curiosity short and answered the food question. Kakashi led them to the only place he knew that could reliably and cheaply revitalize Naruto… Ichiraku's.

Though this may sound surprising, this was the first time either Sakura or Sasuke had ever been to a ramen stand. Sasuke was in a wealthy family, and only ate out at nice restaurants. It would be un-proper for a clan to eat anywhere else after all, even though Mikoto rather hated it.

Sakura's family on the other hand, just thought highly of themselves. They weren't a clan, but they did earn a good living, and as such avoided places like Ichiraku's like the plague. Kakashi on the other hand was a ninja and eating at places like this was a fact of life. Even some of the smart members of noble clans eat at food stands every now and then.

"Hello, how may I…aah! NARUTO!!!" Ayame yelled as she showed a great deal of athleticism, jumping over the counter and rushing Kakashi. "Naruto? Naruto are you okay? Naruto?"

Kakashi was doing his best to keep Naruto from being grabbed by the panic-stricken girl. The boy slept through the worst of the yelling and Kakshi didn't want to wake him if he could help it. Kakashi was doing a good job of it until Ayame grabbed Kakashi by the collar and roughly pulled him down to her eye-level. "If you did anything to my otouto…"

The seething girl left the statement unfinished and let Kakashi fill in the blanks. Ayame had an edge in her eyes that Kakashi had only seen in people about to kill something in cold blood…well that and Anko.

Kakshi gulped, _'Why is Naruto always making crazy women his sisters?'_

With the scene proceeding in front of them, was it any wonder that Sasuke and Sakura had sweat bubbles?

Kakashi thought fast to save himself. "Calm down, Naruto is fine. He just wore himself out while we were training. I planned to wake him up when the food was ready." Ayame looked at blond closely and upon inspection found no signs of injury. Ayame gave the cyclopse one last glare that suggested pain if he was lying and let the man go.

Kakashi let out the breath he was holding. Sasuke and Sakura didn't know what to make of their jonin instructor being scared of a civilian girl that worked at a ramen stand. They had heard about Ayame from Naruto, but they always thought she sounded nice… not psychotic.

It didn't take long for the food to come out and Kakshi balanced Naruto on his stool. Ayame placed the bowl under Naruto's nose and once the aroma reached the blonde's brain, everyone was given a show of 'Who Can Eat Ramen Faster Than The Speed Of Light!' It was sleeping straight to eating, then drowsiness. It was as if Naruto took 'waking up and eating' and reversed the order.

"Wh…Where am I?" the blond asked to no one in particular, eyes still narrow from grogginess. Sasuke face-palmed and Sakura sighed. Kakashi just chuckled a bit and Ayame smiled at her little brother.

"You-are-at-the-number-one-greatest-food-stand!" Ayame sang

"Ichiraku's." Naruto replied.

Ayame ruffled Naruto's hair for giving the correct answer. Kakashi just chuckled some more and Sasuke and Sakura repeated their expression from earlier, but this time in reverse. Sasuke sighed and Sakura face-palmed.

Naruto was fully awake as another bowl was placed in front of him. Team Seven was quiet as they ate. Nobody was really in any talking mood, and just filled their mouths with food. Ayame was just happy her otouto came by as she made another bowl for the blond.

That was until curiosity got the better of Sakura. "Hey Naruto, Where were you when you were hiding?" Pinky asked. Sasuke tuned in also wanting to know the answer.

Naruto finished his bowl before he answered. "I was at the waterfall."

"There wasn't a waterfall out there." Sakura replied.

Kakashi cut in, "Acually, if you go from where Naruto entered, straight ahead about two and a half miles, there is a small waterfall."

Sakura nodded, but Sasuke was straight back to furious. _'He was only 2 and a-half miles away… in a straight line.'_ That wasn't very far considering that they were dealing with several miles of woods.

"How did you get so good at covering your tracks Naruto." Sakura was truly curious as to how Naruto could ever beat Sasuke at anything. To her surprise Naruto didn't blush at her praise. Sakura rarely ever praised Naruto for anything, but once in a blue moon it happened and Naruto always blushed.

Instead Naruto gave a weak laugh. "I just picked it up, I guess." Naruto didn't want to tell Sakura that it was to avoid… certain unpleasant peoples. Kakashi knew of course, and wished that it wasn't the case. Ayame also knew; she had hidden Naruto on several occasions. Ayame had a sad look on her face and turned back to her cooking to avoid being spotted by Naruto's teammates.

Sasuke and Sakura both felt and made note of how the mood fell in the room. Sakura had no clue on why, but Sasuke had a pretty good idea. After Sasuke figured out that Naruto was part Kyuubi, he figured out a lot of things. Sasuke even confronted Mikoto on several topics. The Uchiha still didn't know the whole story, but he knew enough to frown at Naruto's answer.

Kakshi changed the topic quickly, so as to prevent too much information from coming out. "Naruto, what were you doing out there? When I got there, the trees in the area all had holes in them."

Naruto beamed at this question. "My Kaa-chan showed me an awesome jutsu, and I'm trying to learn it. I can't do everything she did, but I figured out some of it."

Kakashi smiled at Naruto. He was a firm believer that every ninja should have their on jutsu's. It always made it harder to win a fight when your opponent keeps throwing new jutsu's at you. He hated how some of the clans would shun any other style other than their clan's own style.

Sasuke was mixed between anger and interest. The boy was upset that Naruto was learning something new while he wasn't. The fact that his rival was learning something that he could test himself against and even better learn himself was always a good thing though.

Sakura on the other hand ignored the new jutsu, and tuned into the conversation that was news to her; specifically, the kaa-chan part. "I thought you were an orphan?"

Naruto always liked to talk about this. "My mother came out of her coma a few days ago. Kaa-chan is the greatest, and she said she was going to teach me all sorts of stuff."

Sasuke rolled his eyes. He knew better, but Sakura was still blissfully unaware. Sakura was surprised to hear that Naruto had family at all. Years of thinking he was an orphan at birth tend to do that. Even though technically he was with Haruhi gone, but Sakura didn't need to know that yet.

Sakura still found a way to insult Naruto with it though. "Good, maybe with her help you'll become competent, right Sasuke-kun?"

Kakshi sighed and Sasuke avoided looking at the girls hoping she would get the hint to leave him out of this. The Uchiha may have had his own set of insults for Naruto, but he honestly believes Naruto was of more use than Sakura was.

Something in the back with Ayame crashed. Ayame came out with death in her eyes. "What did you say?" It was clear that Ayame was not happy with pink at all.

Sakura just eep-ed and turned to Sasuke for help, but the brooder knew better than to get in the way of a sister defending her brother. He had 2 sisters and both tortured his ass for a weak when he call Kensuke 'annoying' once. '_How was __I__ supposed to know he would be so sensitive about it?'_

Everything was silenced though when Naruto asked a question. "Um…what does competent mean?" All at once, everyone face planted into the dirt. When they all got back up, Ayame explained what competent meant.

After which, it was pretty easy to say that Naruto wasn't happy at that point. The blond chose to keep his thoughts to himself though. Ayame on the other hand just sent glares at Sakura's way, and Sakura had the distinct feeling she wouldn't be welcomed here if she didn't keep her mouth shut.

Kakashi soon realized that they overstayed their welcome and, directed the team to the tower. From there on, the rest of the day became an attempt by normalcy to reassert it-self.

The Hokage gave them a mission to pull weeds at some lazy guy's house; the genin got into a fight middle of it because Sasuke told Sakura to leave him alone; Naruto came to her rescue, and finally Sakura came to Sasuke's rescue. When the mission was done, Kakashi told them that they could go home.

Before they left though….

"Sasuke, you shouldn't hide those bruises with a henge. Naruto must've fought pretty well to leave them on you." Kakashi had figured that Sasuke had received the bruises from Naruto, but he didn't know when or why.

Sakura whipped her head around, but Sasuke ignored her and narrowed his eyes at the retreating figure of his sensei. Sakura was going to ask, but the look Sasuke had been nothing short of murder, and thus silenced her.

The group started to leave; Naruto made his near constant attempt to ask Sakura out, and was yelled at, again, in response. Putting what she just heard aside, Sakura asked Sasuke out and was subsequently ignored in response, also again, and all three walked to their respective homes. However, it did not take long for Sakura to notice that Sasuke and Naruto were walking towards the same direction together.

"Hey Naruto, don't you live that way!?" Sakura yelled pointing in the opposite direction.

Naruto just shrugged, "I live this way now."

"Oh," was all Sakura said and walked away. It would only hit her later after she got home that Naruto was heading into the clan housing district. This basically meant that Naruto was either living at a clan's compound or at his own compound. Sakura would ask tomorrow.

The walk back for Sasuke and Naruto was quiet. Neither of them really had anything to say. Sasuke broke off when they reached his compound and Naruto was just going to keep walking, but before he could Sasuke stopped him. "Moka and Suki both asked if you could come by once in a while.

Naruto was surprised at first, but then smiled. "Sure. Tell them I'll come over sometime."

Sasuke nodded and went into his compound. Naruto had a smile on his face till he was grabbed from behind, hog tied, and dragged to the back of his compound blind folded.

When they stopped, the blind fold was removed to reveal a smiling Anko. "My, my otouto, those foxes were right! You don't see an ambushes coming. Which is weird, considering you could detect Kaa-chan when she was trying to avoid being spotted."

Naruto looked around. They were in the back yard. Anko was walking around Naruto like a shark circuling its prey. Blaze, Storm, and Luna were lying several feet away just watching. Haruhi was sitting on the porch with the biggest book Naruto had ever seen on her lap.

"Kaa-chan, help me! Anko-neechan is looking at me like a piece of meat!" Anko did have a gleam in her eye.

Haruhi didn't even take her eyes off the book when she replied. "If she was your sister then I would help, but right now Anko is your sensei and I have no right to interfere with her training methods."

"Even in the result of my death?" Naruto yelled.

"Even in the result of your death baby." Haruhi answered back, the tone not sounding worried one bit.

Naruto was quickly turned to the three foxes for help, but Haruhi cut him off. "Don't bother with those three. I instructed them not to interfere with Anko's training, oh, and Anko, you won't interfere when they train Naruto."

Naruto was gushing waterfalls while Anko stuck her tongue out at Haruhi. With that out of the way, Anko turned back to Naruto with that gleam in her eye that does not bode well for Naruto.

"Alright gaki, what did the instructors tell you about killing people." Needless to say, Anko had decided to proceed with the topics that she excelled at.

All three foxes perk up at that. Even Haruhi stopped reading and looked up. After all, his was an important topic that all ninja had to go though. The first kill was always a make-or-break situation.

Most shinobi 'grew up' a little and started taking the job more seriously. Some would quit the job instead. Either way, it was important to make sure that the person's first kill didn't break them. Trying to prevent a suicide from happening was the main goal of the whole exercise.

Naruto turned his head away, eyes darkening. The academy started the process of helping the genin in a counseling session that usually explained what they would most likely feel after the aforementioned act. It was up to the shinobi and their families to finish the job. There were also counseling centers shinobi could go to in order to get help, additional or otherwise. However Naruto's counseling was… different.

Everyone in the field saw Naruto's reaction and were immediately on edge. Once Anko realized something was wrong, she cut Naruto free and sat down in front of the blond. "Come on Otouto, tell me what they told you."

Naruto hated that day. The day the counselor talked to him. He had never told anyone what the man said to him. Naruto was too scared of what people would say. This was his family though; he trusted them.

Naruto took in a deep breath. Every time Naruto thought about the counselors words, he felt sick. "The counselor said… he said that I would 'probably like it'…. How it wouldn't surprise him if I felt a craving for it."

The fox's jaws dropped. Haruhi was speechless as her eyes grew. Anko eyes were also wide, but narrowed soon after. The next question came out more as a hiss. "Did he say anything else?"

While Naruto can have bouts of inspiration when it comes to reading people, it can come off as very selective at times. Thus, he could not tell what Anko was thinking at the time, and in his state of distress, was worried that she might be mad at him.

Naruto fought back tears as this was always the words that really hurt. "He said that I would like it so much, that I would start killing everyone and wouldn't be able to stop myself. That ANBU would have to kill me to get me to stop the 'killing-spree'."

Naruto looked away in shame, "Please don't hate me." The last sentence was little more than a whisper.

Many things proceeded to occur after this bit of revelation, for one thing, Anko was shocked that he would even think that she would hate him. Not only that, she was pissed beyond comprehension; not for Naruto to even think that, but for the ass who actually had the gall to tell him something like that. And from there, Anko looked at Haruhi, unspoken questions in her eyes.

The mother nodded and was gone with a shushine leaving a nice pile of leaves. Anko turned back to Naruto and saw the tears. This 'counselor' will pay dearly. With a tired sigh, Anko bopped Naruto on the head and asked, "How could you ever think I would hate you?"

Naruto looked up at his nee-chan with hopeful eyes.

Anko continued, "Naruto, what that man told you was a fucking lie. It takes a certain type of person to like killing people. You're not that type of person. You care about people, and try to help when you can."

"But the counselor said…" Naruto tried to say.

"Forget what the counselor said. He lied to you. Know what I think you'll go through? I think you will go through 'the norm'." Anko said.

"What's 'the norm'?" Naruto asked.

"The norm is what ninja's call what happens when a normal person kills for the first time. You see first, you'll kill the person. Then you'll stand there and look at the body as your brain processes what you did. Then you'll puke your guts out, and finally you'll accept what you did. A norm's biggest problem is after. A norm tends to remember the face of their first kill and it haunts them for the rest of their life."

"Is that what you went through nee-chan?" Naruto asked, feeling a little better from Anko's words.

However the question got him a swift bop on the head. "Do I seem like a 'normal person', gaki?" Anko sighed, "I happen to be an interrogator, gaki. There are far worse thing you can do to a man than killing them. Those… are the things that haunt me."

Naruto remained quiet and just stared at his nee-chan. In public, she never showed this side of herself; probably couldn't afford to. It shouldn't be surprising that Naruto understood how hard it could be to open up, nor the fact that Anko did it for his sake.

"All right gaki, I'm going to go over what you should have heard, okay?" Naruto nodded and Anko's lesson began.

While Anko was teaching her little bro what he should've learned years ago, Haruhi was at the Hokage tower. Her anger, if such a word can do it justice, had skyrocketed upon learning what Naruto went through.

Haruhi had shushine-ed as close to the tower as possible, but the tower had seals so as to prevent any unauthorized entry. That was why Haruhi didn't shushine directly into the tower, and why her form could be seen slowly approaching said tower. The few people she did pass by, while she made way to the entrance felt the killer intent radiating off of her, and thus quickly shied away from the enraged fox.

Soon enough, ANBU had Haruhi completely surrounded but didn't make a move. They had orders to leave Haruhi alone, but that much killer intent warranted extreme caution. Haruhi could be felt for quite some distance, though not enough to alert her friends and family.

Sarutobi was still in the Mission Room at the time. Team 8 and Team Gai had finished their missions and were reporting to the Hokage their success, when the killer intent washed over them.

Neji, who had been pointedly ignoring Hinata to the point of rudeness, had quickly forgotten all about the girl as he readied himself. Meanwhile Hinata found that she could barely breathe as the wave encompassed her. Akamaru was shivering and whined, while Shino's bugs were going nuts inside his jacket.

The team leaders just looked at each other to confirm, then at the Hokage for instructions. The Hokage just sat and waited. Iruka was still there and he also wasn't certain what to do. Iruka was the former instructor of the genin, so he played a role in choosing jobs for them till the hokage gave them more important jobs.

They didn't have to wait long as Haruhi busted through the doors. "Sarutobi, we must talk NOW!" Sarutobi was going to suggest going to his office, but Gai beat him to it.

Gai placed a hand on Haruhi. "Ma'am I understand that you're upset about something but this is very un…" He never got to finish as Haruhi spun around and punched Gai so hard that he went flying through the doors and was imbedded into the wall across the hall.

"GAI-SENSEI!" Lee yelled as he went over to check on his sensei.

Tenten jaw hung open and Neji just stared wide eye at Haruhi. Both the genin had only seen that speed and power from Gai. Kureni and her team took a few steps back from Haruhi. Haruhi turned back around and stared at the Hokage. "Do you know what the counselor at the academy told Naruto about his first kill?"

The Hokage was on alert at that question. "Maybe we should take this to my office."

Haruhi ignored the man's suggestion and continued her line of questioning. "Well?"

Sarutobi saw that she wasn't going to move. "I do not, but I assumed he did his job; very few genin have had problems after we hired him."

"Would you like to know?" Sarutobi remained quiet. "He told Naruto that he would enjoy killing and that he would have to be put down like a raving dog to get him to stop."

As her heated words left her mouth, Haruhi's killer intent spiked even higher just remembering how Naruto looked when he told them what was said to him. Sarutobi's eyes enlarged several sizes in response.

Haruhi was about to go on in her tirade, when Iruka quickly stood up. "Haruhi-san!" Haruhi turned to tell the man to shut up, but upon seeing that it was Iruka, stopped. Iruka just indicated to a spot right behind her. When Haruhi turned, what she saw was Team 8 held in fear.

Shino was motionless, but the buzzing from the bugs was a clear indication he wasn't doing well. Kiba was trying to calm Akamaru down, but what with being extremely stressed himself, was achieving nothing. Then Haruhi saw Hinata.

The fox had instantly recognized her as the girl with a crush on her son. Hinata was trembling and visibly terrified. Kureni determinedly placed herself between her team and Haruhi, as if to protect them. Team Gai were in a similar state, but hid it better, seemingly in better form at least.

Haruhi realized what exactly she was doing and did her best to calm down. As the killer intent died, so did the tension… a little bit.

"Where is Naruto right now?" Iruka asked.

Haruhi looked back at the scarred man. "He is with Anko, at the compound."

Iruka nodded and jumped out of an open window. Both the Hokage and Haruhi knew where Iruka was going. Haruhi looked Sarutobi dead in the eye. "I highly suggest that you do something about this, or I'll make sure something happens, and you really don't want me to find this man."

Sarutobi nodded, "An investigation will take place and I will make sure something is done." Haruhi nodded, when Sarutobi said he would get it done, it got done. Haruhi much calmer now left the same way Iruka did.

"Who was that?" Tenten asked after a short pause, jaw still hung open at what had just occurred.

"I recognize her from somewhere." Kurenai stated. Turning to her team, she asked, "Is everyone alright?"

Shino and Kiba nodded in answer, but to her surprise found that Hinata was gone from their midst.

"Where is Hinata?" The two boys looked at each other, but neither had an answer.

"Gai-sensei, Gai-sensei; wake up." Lee said with worry. Gai was out like a light from Haruhi's attack. Tenten found a new target to admire. After all, not too many people could knock Gai out with one punch, and that was only one woman from what she could remember… until now at least. Neji just stared at the open window he saw Haruhi and Hinata jumped out of.  
______________________________________________________________________________

When Haruhi returned to the compound she was greeted with Anko and Iruka, smiling with Naruto. Apparently, Iruka had just told a funny joke. Haruhi was glad to see that Naruto was feeling better and would have joined them if it wasn't for the little genin following her. "You know it isn't proper to follow someone and spy on others." Haruhi hated 'proper', but it was useful in making clan members feel like dicks.

Hinata eeped at being found out. "I-I-I-I'm s-sorry," as she stepped out from the bushes.

Haruhi just smiled at the girl. "Don't be, you were just worried about Naruto-kun, right?"

When Haruhi realized Hinata was following her, Haruhi had slowed down so that the Hyuuga could keep up. Drastically slowing the fox down, while Iruka was at full speed.

Hinata nodded, "Naruto-kun is a good person. How could anyone say such a thing to him?"

Haruhi found that she had to remind herself about Sarutobi's stupid law. Sasuke found out on his own, but even Haruhi couldn't just tell someone about Naruto's secret. "Tell me… Hinata was it? What do you think?"

Hinata looked up at Haruhi and as lavender met red, she turned away. "I t-think Naruto-kun is a g-good person. H-He would never h-hurt someone intentionally."

Haruhi smiled, _'At least someone Naruto's own age thinks well of my kit.'_ "Why don't you tell him that? I think hearing it from a friend would be better than hearing it from us."

"I-I couldn't do that. Me and N-N-Naruto-kun, we really aren't f-friends." Hinata stuttered out. Her face was redder than an apple at the thought though.

Haruhi nudged Hinata towards Naruto, "How would you know if you don't talk to him?"

Well, Haruhi saw that Hinata wasn't going to move in her n indecisiveness. In response, Haruhi grabbed Hinata and threw her toward Naruto's direction. "NARUTO, HEADS UP."

Naruto, Iruka, and Anko looked up to see a screaming Hinata missile smash into Naruto. The two genin slid to a stop several feet away, completely dazed from the impact. To her credit, Anko immediately caught on after seeing what Haruhi had thrown. Only a fellow crazy people would understand something like that, luckily that is what Anko was. Iruka was about to go check on the two children when Anko grabbed him.

"Don't get involved." She whispered. Iruka wasn't sure what was going on, but followed Anko's orders.

"Owwww," Hinata said rubbing her head were a nasty goose egg was forming. Naruto was sprawled under Hinata, and was more or less in a similar state Hinata was in. Soon, Hinata finally realized who she was on and scrambled to get off. As a result, the Hyuuga was beat red and stuttering like no other. "N-N-N-N-Naruto-k-kun, g-g-gomen; are y-y-you o-okay?"

Naruto sat up. "Yah… owwww. Dammit kaa-chan, you could have hurt Hinata! What were you thinking?" Haruhi just gave him a wicked smile and shrugged. Naruto turned back to Hinata. "Are you okay Hinata?"

Hinata was beat red, _'Naruto-kun is concerned about me.'_ "I t-think I'm f-f-fine Naruto-kun."

With a dubious, "You sure?" Naruto still checked to make sure Hinata was fine, which only made Hinata blush even more.

"Naruto-kun, I h-heard about w-what was s-said to you." At that, Naruto stopped what he was doing and stared at Hinata. Hinata was a little unnerved, but she already made it this far. "I-I think the counselor was w-wrong. Y-you are a g-good p-person and I think y-you will n-never do what that m-man said y-you would do."

There she said it. It felt good to actually tell Naruto how she felt.

"Do… do you really think so Hinata?" Naruto face hadn't changed since Hinata started.

Hinata wasn't sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing. "Y-yes" was all she got out. In a blink of an eye, Naruto had Hinata in a bear hug.

"Thank you. Everyone says I'm a monster. They're wrong, but it still hurts."

Anko and Iruka smiled at the touching moment between the two, and Haruhi was seconds away from dancing at her success. Unfortunately, Hinata never heard the words, for as soon as the paled-eyed girl registered Naruto was hugging her, Hinata was out like a light.

Naruto was feeling a lot better after Hinata's statement of her faith in his humanity.

While Haruhi was gone, Anko had gone over what the counselor should have told Naruto. When Iruka had arrived, the scarred man actually told Naruto about his first kill and how he felt afterwards. Naruto had his doubts, but Hinata had smashed them. It was actually… what's that word, where your chest feels all warm and fuzzy inside?... ah whatever, to hear those words, coming from someone his own age when few even tried to learn anything about him….

Haruhi walked up to her son. "You can always talk to us if you have any problems. Remember that always Naru-kun." Naruto smiled at his mother. It wasn't a fake smile and Haruhi was getting better at telling them apart.

Iruka was going to join them when he suddenly found a set of hands wrapping themselves around his neck. "You know, you're gonna be getting tons of brownie points for what you've done for my otouto." Anko whispered in his ear. It was making Iruka… nervous though. "I should reward you."

Anko licked the side of Iruka's face to emphasize the point. _O.K_…. Iruka was attracted to Anko physically, he can't lie about that, but he wasn't like that.

"Uh-Thank you Anko-san but I must be going. Naruto if you ever need to talk. I'm always free." With that said Iruka shushine-ed the fuck out of there.

Anko just looked between her arms where the attractive young man once stood. "He likes a good chase too, huh? I'm coming for you Iruka-kun." Anko sang with a near-maniacal smirk as she shushined after him.

Naruto had a sweat bubble. "Iruka-sensei is in real trouble, isn't he Kaa-chan?"

"I don't-".

Haruhi was going to say that Anko wouldn't hurt him before she decided to think of a better way to put it.

"She wouldn't-".

Once again Haruhi thought over what she knew of Anko.

"Yah, he's screwed." She finally said and Naruto just nodded in agreement.

It was two hours later and Anko hadn't returned and Hinata was still out.

In that time, Haruhi had been watching over Naruto's training with Luna. Luna had two jobs; build up Naruto's chakra control and figure out what fighting style would best suit the blond. The white fox was currently teaching Naruto how to tree walk, and suffice to say, it was slow going.

Naruto was now about 6 feet from the ground and wasn't getting any higher. He had tried to use less chakra and promptly fell on his butt for his efforts. The next time he tried more chakra and got sent flying from the tree.

Luna had to explain that, too much chakra and it would push Naruto off. Naruto needed better control if he was going to tap into his fox chakra. If the genin didn't have enough control then he could be seriously hurt from his own chakra.

Fox chakra was more condensed and several times stronger than normal human chakra. It was like a raging river to a mere garden hose. Naruto's coils would be pushed to their limits and he would receive chakra burns more easily. And so, the young one needed to get better control if she was going to teach him anything.

"Oh, Naruto-kun." Haruhi perked up at hearing that. Haruhi spun in all direction, trying to find where that voice came from. Then there was a soft giggle and a "Naruto-kun stop, not here."

Haruhi looked down to see Hinata rolling around and smiling from ear to ear. "mmmmm Naruto-kun."

Haruhi couldn't believe what she was hearing. Seriously. _'Was this girl having a sex dream with Naruto?'_ Another moan confirmed Haruhi's thoughts.

"Hey Naruto, tell me again why you won't ask this girl out?" Haruhi yelled out to her son causing Naruto to fall again.

Naruto groaned, "What did you say Kaa-chan?"

A rather loud knock on the door caught Haruhi's attention. "Never-mind!"

Naruto frowned and went back to his training while Haruhi went to see who could be at the door. When she arrived to the door, Haruhi checked herself to make sure she looked presentable as a clan head.

"Hello and welc…" Her greeting stopped short when she saw who was on the other side of the door.

It was none other than the head of the famous Hyuuga clan, Hiashi.

When Neji returned to the Hyuuga compound, he went to Hiashi's office. After all, it was his job to inform Hiashi if anything went on in the village. Neji hated going to see Hiashi and Haishi knew this. However knowing the happenings of Konoha was Hiashi's job, and all Hyuuga were to report to him if they found something of interest.

Thus, Neji informed Hiashi about what the counselor had said to Naruto, much to Hiashi's surprise. Hiashi was admittedly impressed with the counselors work at the time, but even he could not stand to support a man that would say something like that to a future Konoha nin. Especially if that nin could destroy the entire village should his prisoner take control.

Neji also informed Hiashi that a white haired woman was demanding something should be done and that the Hokage had started an investigation. Hiashi could understand that. Any parent would demand the same and knowing how much Sarutobi cared for Naruto, it was clear what would happen.

Hiashi was surprised to hear that Gai was K.O.-ed in one punch from Haruhi though. To explain, at one point Gai had asked to teach Neji other forms of taijutsu, to which one member of the Main Family, rather arrogantly, proclaim that the Gentle Fist style was more than enough. To no one's surprise, Gai disagreed, and in the end had to fight the Hyuuga from the main family.

Suffice it to say, Gai wiped the floor with the main family member. Hiashi could attest to that incident, as he himself was present to that spectacular humiliation and had to admit to himself that Gai was an 'elite' for a reason.

The last thing that Neji reported had annoyed Hiashi to no end however.

Hinata went with Haruhi.

Hiashi knew this would create a stir in the Hyuuga counsel, and worst yet, if the rest of the village found out? Rumors would be flying all over the place. Hiashi got ready and went to retrieve his daughter. As clan head, he didn't have to go. After all, Hiashi could have sent Neji; but he himself wanted to exchange a few words with the new clan's founder.

It was his first time seeing the Uzumaki compound. He had to admit that it was rather beautiful. The houses were well kept and the gardens and park were full of life from flower and trees, even if the place was empty of human life. When Hiashi first saw the main house, his exact words were "I've seen better."

Now here Hiashi was looking right into Haruhi's red eyes. "I am sorry if I came at an inconvenient time, but I believe my daughter is here."

Haruhi looked at Hiashi for a little bit before answering, "Yes, I'll go fetch her."

"While I'm here, I would also like to engage in a discussion with you, Miss Uzumaki." That stopped Haruhi in her tracks.

Haruhi was once again looking Hiashi up and down. The mother wanted to know what exactly Hiashi was up to before she let the man into her home. He was keeping his Hyuuga demeanor up, and it was impossible to read…. If you weren't a Kyuubi of course, but even then Haruhi wasn't sure what this was about.

"Very well, please come in." Haruhi lead the leader of the strongest clan in Konoha to her living room.

Hiashi sat quietly on the couch while Haruhi sat across from him. "Would you like something to drink?" Haruhi was only following proper edict.

"No, thank you, I won't be here that long I believe. Tell me, has the clan been doing well?" Hiashi asked watching Haruhi carefully.

Haruhi smirked, "It's fine. We made new friends with the Uchiha and the Inuzuka. Naruto is training to become the Hokage and I would like to think he's doing rather well."

Just then several loud yelps of colorful profanity and yelling about how trees were stupid came through the open back door. Hiashi slowly leaned over to peer out the door.

"Just keep working at it dear!" Haruhi yelled to her son as she brought a cup of tea to her lips.

_'When did she get tea?'_ Hiashi thought when he looked back at Haruhi.

Hiashi, was at the meeting that formed Haruhi's clan, he had sat idle and worked out every possible way to make this… strange occurrence, work in his favor. When he returned home later that day, the Hyuuga head went to look up any records on Minato's wife that the Hyuuga had. He found to his surprise that there was very little on the woman.

The description matched, but anything else was either missing or non-existant.

And now, if he were to challenge the Uzumaki, he would also be up against the Uchiha and the Inuzuka. Hiashi wasn't worried about the Uchiha. The only two people in that clan that could even fight were Mikoto and Sasuke, and neither had the Sharingan. In the mother's case, Mikoto will never gain them. Politically, their only power came from the masses giving them support, whatever good that'll do them.

The Inuzuka, on the other hand were equal to the Hyuuga. Politically, the Inuzuka actually beat the Hyuuga more often because they also had more support from the villagers. If things should also come to a fight, the Inuzuka outnumbered the Hyuuga thanks to their dogs. Hiashi also had _**known**_ that a very well trained Inuzuka could beat a Hyuuga…not easily, but they could.

"You don't want to talk with me about my clan. You are not as welcomed to our family yet, unlike your daughter. Please get to the point." Haruhi said, irritation beginning to lace her words.

Hiashi looked at Haruhi for a bit before answering. "You know that my daughter has feelings toward your son, correct?"

Haruhi smirked, "Your daughter has good taste."

Hiashi ignored the comment. "Tell me, what do you think would happen if people saw my daughter coming here to see Naruto on a regular basis?" Hiashi asked in his Hyuuga 'hide all emotions' tone.

Immediately, Haruhi saw where this was going and narrowed her eyes. "People would start rumors about our children and our clans. I don't see a problem though." Haruhi really didn't want to get rid of one of the few people that wanted to be around her son.

Hiashi nodded his head in agreement. "That's right. You see, as clan heads we must also look out for not only our family, but their reputations as well." The way Haishi was talking gave her the impression that he was attempting to teach a child.

"Are you saying that you think the Uzumaki clan will hurt the Hyuuga's reputation if we are seen together?" Haruhi was growling that sentence out, but Hiashi chose to ignore the obvious anger in Haruhi's voice.

"To put it bluntly… yes; however this has nothing to do with my clan's reputation and more to do with my daughter's reputation." Hiashi said without batting an eye.

Haruhi couldn't believe her ears. The man had the balls to walk into her house and insult her family! "I suggest you choose your words more carefully, Hyuuga-_san_."

"…That is why I propose an alliance." Hiashi said without a beat, nearly overrunning her previous statement.

"If you think you can…come again?" Haruhi was confused. Weren't they just talking about how her son would hurt his daughter? So why was Hiashi suddenly proposing an alliance?

"'I propose an alliance'. It would be public knowledge that our clans are helping each other, much like you with the Uchiha and Inuzuka. You see, my daughter will come see Naruto whether I forbid it or not. You may not know it, but it is one of the very few things she will disobey me with."

"You told her to stay away from Naruto before, haven't you?" Haruhi asked. The anger was no longer there and it was replaced with curiosity.

Hiashi nodded, "Yes, I have; but even _I_ will admit that your son helps my daughter."

Haruhi was going to ask what he meant, but Hiashi in a rare moment just gave her a look that said it was his secret.

"When you announce the formation of your clan, there will be an up-roar for answers, and an even larger one saying that this clan should not exist. However, if you have the backing of the Uchiha, the Inuzuka, and the Hyuuga? Then your clan will be more readily accepted amongst the populace than if you were by yourselves." Hiashi said smoothly, as he gave the reason for saying yes.

Now it was time for the catch. "What would you get out of such an alliance?" Haruhi asked intrigued.

"We would be seen as the clan that helped the Fourth start his clan." Hiashi said flatly.

Haruhi didn't like the sounds of that. "You want to ride on my husband's legacy." It wasn't a question, but a realization.

"Yes, as well as it would allow my daughter to come here more freely and see your son. Now that he isn't an orphan and has become the to-be heir of the Fourth's clan, this would also be more accepted as well." Hiashi added.

Haruhi was going to say no until that last bit of information. Fact is, Naruto had almost no friends his age, and this was her chance to have a real one that truly cared for him. Haruhi thought over all the possibilities, and one thought brought a large smile to her face, making Haruhi stare into space.

Hiashi watched Haruhi and wondered where he had seen that face before. It didn't take long. He had seen that look on his wife's face several times, and every time he asked, it was always the same answer…

"_Grandbabies!!_"

Haruhi giggled a little and Hiashi started to second-guess if he was doing the right thing. Before he could go back on the deal though, Haruhi had already grabbed Hiashi's hand from nowhere and was shaking it with much vigor.

"I heartily accept your proposal, Hiashi-kun." Haruhi said with a big smile from ear to ear.

Hiashi on the other hand was thinking. _'Oh dear kami, what did I just do?'_

At this point, Hiashi wanted to cry. His plans had horribly back fired, but it was too late now. The Hyuuga could protest now, but if Haruhi was anything like his wife, then there wasn't any point. All his arguments would go in one ear and out another.

Haruhi left the bewildered Hyuuga to go cheerily fetch Hinata. When the white haired fox went outside, she saw Hinata watching Naruto from the porch, smiling as the blond once again raced up a tree. This only brought a bigger smile to Haruhi's face. "Naruto-kun, come say goodbye to Hinata!" Haruhi called out.

The yell got both of the genins attention. Hinata blushed at being caught watching her favorite show "The Never Give Up Show, staring Uzumaki Naruto."

Naruto on the other hand fell again from the tree, but this time landing on his head. Once again colorful profanity filled the backyard.

"N-Naruto-kun are you alright?" Hinata called out in worry, but Naruto just rolled over and gave Hinata a thumbs-up. Hinata sighed in relief. Haruhi had seen the whole thing and an even larger smile was on her face, threatening to split her face in two. Haruhi and Hinata waited for Naruto to join them before they went into the compound.

Hinata gasped in surprise at seeing her father sitting in the living room. Hiashi had never personally come to get her from anywhere. The Hyuuga head had always sent a branch member or expected her to come home on time. "Father, why are you here?"

"I have come to discuss some issues with Uzumaki-san, and also to retrieve you." Hiashi's look turned cold. It was a slight gesture, nearly unnoticeable, but Hinata was a Hyuuga all her life and saw it. However, it was not so slight that Haruhi couldn't see it either. "Considering my daughter ran off without telling anyone where she was going…. I thought it might be necessary to apologize if my daughter wasn't welcomed."

Hinata looked down at her feet. "I'm sorry, Father."

Haruhi didn't like the fact that Hinata was being scolded in front of her, but Hiashi had brought up good points that she herself would bring up with Naruto if he had done the same thing. Haruhi knew however that Naruto would not say sorry like Hinata. The blond would have defended his action with something about being worried about his friends.

Naruto on the other hand stepped in front of Hinata as if to shield her. "It is okay, Hinata was worried about me and just wanted to make sure I was okay. She shouldn't be punished for that. Not to mention, Hinata is always welcomed here."

Hinata looked up at Naruto with a beat red face. "D-Do you m-mean t-that Naruto-kun."

Naruto looked over his shoulder and gave Hinata a big smile. "Of course, Hinata. You are now officially one of my 'precious people'."

Hinata found herself eep-ing at Naruto's remark and fought desperately not to pass out.

Hiashi watched the whole scene in silence with a furrowed brow, annoyed that the blond destroyed his attempt to scold his daughter. Hiashi looked up to Haruhi for some help in the matter. What he saw instead was Haruhi just giving him a smile that spoke of nothing but pride for what her son was doing. Or was she smirking instead?

From that, Hiashi actually found himself sighing in front of someone other than a Hyuuga, "Come, Hinata. I still have work to do, and you need to get your studies done."

Hinata was the heir and that meant she had to be fluent in running a clan."Yes father. I'll see you later Naruto-kun and thank you."

With that Hinata moved to Hiashi's side and the Hyuugas left the Uzumaki compound.

Naruto was turning to go back to his training when Haruhi grabbed her son in a missive bear hug. "You're so cute, Naruto! I'm so glad you're my son! You defended a girl against her own father. You'll make a fine husband one day!" Haruhi was rubbing her cheek to Naruto's and holding the boy off the ground.

"Kaa-chan…can't…breath…" Naruto gasped out. Haruhi just squeezed tighter which subsequently made Naruto release whatever air he had left like a balloon.  
______________________________________________________________________________

In the mean time Hiashi was scolding his daughter as they were walking home, and had been doing so for most of the way, until he looked down at Hinata, and saw her smiling in content from ear to ear.

"Hinata are you listening to me?"

No reply.

"Hinata?"

Still no reply.

"Hinata!"

Hinata jumped a little and looked up at her father. "I-I'm sorry father. Did you say something? I was just enjoying this wonderful day."

With that said Hinata went back to smiling like an idiot and even started humming a melody her mother had taught her before she died.

Hiashi just stared at Hinata, _'She's __ignoring__ me… she is becoming too much like her mother.' _Hiashi knew that it was pointless to tell any women anything if they didn't want to hear it and right now, Hinata was so happy with Naruto's words that they were drowning out anything Hiashi was saying.

Hiashi turned back to the road, giving up on trying to speak with Hinata. Instead, he decided to focus on how he was going to inform the Hyuuga counsel of his decision.

The fact that he formed an alliance without any advisement wasn't going to sit well with any of the Hyuugas. Hiashi knew that even if they didn't like it, they would support it as long as he gave reasonable reason why. Hiashi wouldn't use his daughter, especially because rumors of her being stripped of her position as heir was already spreading. Hiashi didn't want any more strikes against Hinata.

He was impressed with Naruto though. The boy had defended Hinata without any fear of him. Either he was brave or stupid. Good thing he wasn't a betting man because, Hiashi should have picked stupid. He would have been more accurate, but currently the Hyuuga was leaning towards bravery. Hiashi didn't want the same thing that Haruhi did, but if Naruto did prove to be a boon to the Hyuuga clan, he would support such a union. Right now though, Naruto was just an annoyance, and unfit to see his daughter in such a way.

Looking down at his daughter again and seeing a smile he hadn't seen in a long time, was making him think that maybe this was going to be a very good thing.

"Iruka-kun… where are you?" Anko called out as she was walking down the streets of Konoha. Anko had already checked Iruka's apartment and the school. Needless to say, the snake mistress had scared some of the genin hopefuls with a sudden shushine from out of nowhere. Anko had also inadvertently started a new fan club at the place, as boys who grew a crush or is that lust? and girls that like Anko's additude joined the 'we love Anko club.' At this point though, Anko was now prowling the street for the scarred chunin, thoughts of the academy brats the furthest thing from her mind. Whilst in her hunt, Anko happened to walk past Ichiraku's.

"Okay, Iruka-kun she's gone, you can come out." Ayame whispered to a frozen Iruka, who was hiding behind the counter.

Iruka slowly rose and leaned on the counter with a sigh, which stemmed from both relief and exhaustion. He had been running from Anko since he left Naruto's compound after all, and he didn't think endurance was exactly his strong suit. "Thanks for the hiding spot, Ayame."

Ayame gave a bright smile in response to her crush. She would pretty much let Iruka do anything, and that also meant a few things that left Ayame blushing about when she really thought about it. Ayame was a healthy young woman after all.

Ayame's father was currently out getting supplies for the shop, which explains their being alone. "Mind telling me why you are running from that woman, Iruka-kun?" Ayame asked.

Iruka sighed in response, as he himself didn't know exactly why he was running. Iruka had filled Ayame in on what happened at Naruto's. It was brief, but the girl got the general idea. "I don't know. I am attracted to her."

That one comment brought Ayame so low that she could have sworn her heart stopped.

"But….." Hope filled Ayame's life once again. "I just don't feel that way."

Ayame moved a little closer to Iruka. This was her chance, "Is there someone else? Is that why you are avoiding her?"

Pulling another Naruto move in 'foot into mouth', "No, there is no one that would prevent me from seeing Anko."

Ayame was a little upset at hearing that, but before she could say anything, "Iruka-kun, are you in there!" Anko called out and Iruka was once again crouched behind the counter.

Ayame turned to Anko with irritation in her eyes. "What are you doing here?" Ayame greeted Anko.

Anko smirked, "Hi to you too, Sis."

"….What did you call me?" Ayame asked not believing her ears.

"Naruto considers both of us his big sisters and we both consider him our little brother. _I_ think that makes us family. We might not like each other, but we agree that Naruto is important." The entire time, Anko had an air of arrogance that Ayame didn't like, but then, that was how Anko was.

"We may both be Naruto's sisters, but we are not each others." Ayame said. Ayame would normally be friendly with Anko about this, but right now her crush was hiding from this woman.

Anko just smirk, "Sorry 'Sis', but that's your nick name for me. Now, have you seen Iruka-kun?"

Ayame tilted her head to the side, while narrowing her eyes. "Why do you want to know?"

At that, Anko knew something was up and decided to play a mind-game with her… what? Mind Games are fun!

"I want to know where he is so I can tie him up and have my way with him all night every night. I'm sure he will enjoy it as much as me."

Iruka was blushing, mostly for the audacity of it all, (I mean in public? Saying all of this, in public!? Where his students can hear? And their freaking _**parents**_? Good grief, he's a school teacher!!! Or close enough!!!), but Ayame was red for other reasons.

"First you want my otouto, and now you want my Iruka-kun?!" Ayame slammed her hand over her mouth realizing what she said.

Anko just laughed, "I see we're competition in more than just Naruto's best nee-chan! I won't lose to you! When I find Iruka-kun I'll make him mine, all **mine!**"

With that said she left laughing rather maniacally even more. Anko knew Iruka was close enough to hear what Ayame had said. Anko was going home now, seeing as she had accomplished something rather fun.

Ayame watched her go in silence, not knowing what to say. After Anko was out of sight, the brunette looked at where Iruka was and saw that he was long gone. Ayame's heart stopped and a feeling of dread washed over her. Ayame hoped against all hope that Iruka was gone before she had made a fool of herself.

Iruka in the mean time was in the training ground were his team once trained. It was in the woods with small clearings here and there. He had heard what Ayame said and had to admit to himself that he was attracted to both girls…physically. Iruka would never start a relationship on that alone though. Sighing to himself, Iruka thought of the old times when he was a genin and the times he had spent with Lora. It was the main reason he never looked for love with anyone. Sighing again, Iruka had a lot to think over.

_'It's going to be a long night, isn't it?' _he thought to himself_…_

**Author notes:**

**I hope you liked the chapter. Once again review and if you seen something, be free to tell me. My only request is give me ideas to fix it.**

**Orannis4: I will admit that I didn't see that, but now that I look at it. I like the way it is. Naruto would say something like that more than being politically correct.**

**The JP: I would agree with you after the wave mission. In the beginning Sasuke was clearly better. After Naruto gets some real training though, yes he is equal if not better than Sasuke. **

**Both of you and all the other people who have reviewed, thank you for your opinions and your help. **

**And everyone else who has placed me on favorites and alerts, thank you. It is nice to have fans.**


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